I used to think happiness meant having a perfect life. Where I would be topping in my exams, no bad days, happiness all the time, no arguments and no problems. But after slowly growing up I have started to see happiness in a different way. Anyone's life can get stressful and it doesn't mean they are falling behind. Our biggest mistake is that we compare our lives with others. We would think that other's are doing better than us and feel sad about it. It's like we create our own problems. But how do you decide that they are doing better? You don't know what they are going through. Maybe something worse which we don't know about.
Also, there's no scale to measure a better or perfect life. We are never satisfied with what we have or once something is achieved. Not only that we should also know that if people has advantages then they would have some disadvantages as well. We should never compare ourselves with others. We are different individuals and we are leading a different life. Our paths may cross but we can never experience the same thing. People feel they are falling behind because someone they know is living the life they always wanted. I think when someone stops thinking about what other's are doing then they can truly stay in peace.
Whenever I feel sad, I would try to figure out the reason. Then I would ask myself, "Can I fix this issue now? Or is it in my capability?" If the answer is "No" then I would divert my mind. Most of the time I manipulate my own mind and divert my concerntation into something else. Like sometimes I would watch anime, or read manhwa, talk to a friend or do something to keep myself busy. Whenever my brain tries to think about what happened earlier then I would instantly start thinking about something else.
I have seen many people would listen to sad songs when they are sad. They think it will help them to feel better. But those sad songs are draining you more. Even if you feel it's helping, actually it's not. You eventually feel better because emotions doesn't last long. But if you want to see fast results then I would suggest watch something funny and or listen to energetic songs which you like the most. I have been doing the same method for a long time and I know it works. If you really want to cheer up and don't like the feeling of staying sad or be in pain then these things could be helpful.
Moreover, we need to learn to accept our emotions. It's okay not to be okay, because it's a normal thing. Well, we can't stay happy for 24 hours, we are human beings and we have many emotions. Staying sad is not a wrong thing but it's bad for our health. When I am sad I can't swallow food because it feels like the pain is stuck in my throat. So, I know how it feels.
For me, happiness often hides in very ordinary moments. I try to do the things I like, which makes me feel better. Also, I think when you feel sad then you should give yourself flowers, give the love you give to other people, treat yourself nicely and that's how it all should be. Don't wait for others validation and most importantly never let your happiness depend on someone else. Nothing is permanent, someone is making you feel better when you're sad but they may not be there in the future. Actually, you can never tell what the other person will do or control them. So, it's better to do things for yourself. You should be the one doing things for yourself not someone else.
When I am upset, I don't always force myself to be positive. I am not saying we should pretend that sadness doesn't exist. But it's not good for health so, I like to stay happy most of the time. I will be sad for 10-30 min and later, I would stop thinking about it.
I don't care who's doing better than me, I only care if I am happy the way I am now. If there's something I can't change, I don't feel the necessity to be depressed about it. I just want to move on in life and do my thing. I don't need big reasons to smile, what matters the most if I am happy with my situation or not.
So, yeah sometimes we just need to slow down enough to notice that happiness is already there.
This is my entry to a contest of indiaunited, I would love to invite you to participate!
The pictures are created with chatgpt.
