The Key to Life

When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy.’ They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.
~ John Lennon

A friend of mine shared this quote with me, and it has been bouncing around in my head ever since.

John Lennon had a way of delivering messages about life and the world that resonated well with people. When he spoke, his passion, and belief in what he was saying, pierced through the hardest of shells and straight into the heart. He was an idealistic human being, who refused to live in reality. I can not fault him for that, look around, reality is a shitty place to live in.

This quote, is golden!

The key to life truly is happiness. So many of us worry endlessly about being normal, or having great careers, or being filthy rich. But ultimately the only true possession we need is to just be happy.

Life is far too short to worry endlessly about insignificant things. Money, by the way, is a very insignificant thing to worry about. Sure, we need money to survive, we need it to buy food, and clothes, and shelter. But being rich, doesn't equal having a great life. If you're a miserable person, all the money in the world will not make you happy. Will not cure your misery. Will not bring you up from the trenches.

We have to be content with the things we do have. We have to appreciate them. I'm not saying don't have aspirations and dreams. Because those are vital tools to life as well. I'm saying while having those big aspirations, and monster dreams, take time to also appreciate everything you do have.

Look around. There are lots of people who have nothing, and are happy as clams.

The same friend who told me about this quote also told me a story about her visit to Cuba.

She said, As poor as those people are in Cuba, and trust me they are dirt poor, and have nothing. They still danced in the streets, and were happy.

You don't see that here in America. You don't see people delighted to just be able to take a breath every morning. You don't see people truly appreciate the precious thing we call life.

Instead they complain about having to wake up early, complain about their jobs, complain about not having ENOUGH money. Complain about traffic, and the weather.

Never once do you hear them say, I'm alive, I have my family, my friends, my health.

Let's be HAPPY America. Let's be grateful for what we DO have, and aspire and dream for the things we don't. Instead of embellishing our feeling of entitlement.We are not entitled to anything in this life. Our next breath could be our last.

SO, LET'S JUST BE HAPPY!