I read a very powerful chapter of “Flow” yesterday, which included the following quote:
“The foremost reason that happiness is so hard to achieve is that the universe was not designed with the comfort of human beings in mind.”
POW.
How does one deal with that?
Well… I am only at the beginning of the book, so I can’t tell what Mihaly’s answer is, but what I am sensing is something along the lines of:
Creating happiness by being in the present and enjoying it.
With perhaps a worthwhile comment that the enjoyment of the present comes from within.
This is both incredibly empowering and challenging. It is all up to me. I make my own happiness and it is happening right here, right now. The pursuits of “better future” are worthwhile but futile if I am not making the present count. No. More. Waiting. The question is how can I find joy in what is unfolding right now, and, wonderfully, I am finding joy in connecting with myself through writing. My journal is a trusted friend, or, more accurately:
My journal is a space. A container, which can be designed as required to support me in whatever way I choose to. I make it what it is. A game… An Infinite game that is oh-so-worth playing.
Every page is a new space. Another container. An invitation to create ANYTHING I choose. It reflects my state of Being in this very moment. What I write is irrelevant, or, to be more precise, not the point at all. It’s simply a byproduct of the precious moment of embodied presence and connection with myself. A moment when I become the Creator simply by engaging with paper without any constraints. I can write, draw, or fold the page into an origami swan - whatever makes me happy. I create my own happiness, and my journal is just a deceptively simple way to get to the state of Creation.