It is easy during this time of year when it is hard to be happy, we wake up when it is dark, we get home when it is dark, it is cold almost all the time, we have to put so many layers on, it is hard to get out of bed and we are now in the middle of winter. It is hard to try and be happy when the weather is so damp and dull. It is hard to be happy when the news is full of negative things, it is hard to try and be happy when the trains are delayed, it is hard to try and be happy when the heating has to be on all the time, it is hard to be happy when family things are going wrong, it is hard to be happy when we loose someone we love, it is hard to be happy when life is full of trials. I get it, I really do. I understand when you want to be happy but are not able to. I understand that being happy is not something that can happen all the time.
Life is full of ups and downs and it seems the moment we are happy something goes wrong and it is time not to be happy or excited again. We almost get to a point where we are scared of being happy because it won’t last long and we don’t want to get our hopes up. We almost try and be happy for those people around us rather than for ourselves. We all want to be happy at some point in the day but as with every emotion it comes and go. It almost goes just as quickly as it comes and that can sometimes be a bit disheartening. Being happy depends on how our day is going and what things we have experienced. However we live in a society where we are surrounded by so many unhappy people. So many people are depressed, so many people are hurting, so many people have many things that are not going well and they are not happy.
They try and be happy because they don’t want to be negative to the other people around them. It is hard to get the right balance. We spend a lot of our time trying to find things that will make us happy, we might be happier if we had a better car, if we had more money, if we had more children, if we had a better house. We try and get it so then these things will make us more happy. However, in reality they don’t. We look for all the material things in this world that can make us happy, all the things that we don’t have that could make us happy. We are not sure that they will change our emotion but we want to check just in case and we also want to keep up with our peers who are also happy. It is a hard path to be on and a hard path to continue on too. We can try as much as we like but sometimes it will be hard.
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but material things do not make you happy and they never will. You may want a nice car but it will be expensive to run. You may want more money but you will have to pay more tax. You may want more children but it will become expensive. You may want a bigger house but the bills will be expensive. Material things will never make you happy. Being happy can and will be hard work. However, happiness comes from inside of us and we need to use our emotions to be able to see whether we can bring happiness to someone else. Maybe the person who struggles with an illness, we could take the children to school. The person who can’t get to do their shopping maybe we can grab them some next time we go to the shops.
Being happy depends on the context we are in and who we are able to help around us. We all want our lives to be filled with happiness but the only thing that will truly make us happy is the gift of the Holy Spirit. God will help us to be able to be filled with happiness because when we pass from this life to the next God will be there. God will be the one who will help us, God will be the one who will give us try happiness.
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