I'm convinced that a house,
A car,
A good paying job and even a person cannot give you everlasting peace and contentment.
In other words,
No material thing,
No materialistic desire and no one external to you can give you the experience of true happiness.
You might say that I'm being pessimistic or spreading hopelessness but I'm not.
Let me explain why.
Remember a day or a moment when you achieved a good mark in school or university?
Remember when you first got your bike or car?
Remember when you moved into your house or when you got your job?
Do you feel the same every day as you felt in that moment?
Do you feel that same sense of achievement or contentment?
Most of you will say no.
Now let's talk about people in our lives.
Remember when you proposed to your partner?
Remember your wedding day?
Are you as happy every day as you were on that day?
Do you feel the same love every moment?
Most of you will say no.
So who gives us happiness?
Neither things nor people nor any materialistic desire can give us the happiness,
Peace and contentment we are seeking.
The question arises who does?
Before answering that I want to ask you to sit still for a moment.
Take a deep breath and dwell in those moments of happiness,
Peace and contentment.
Let me take the liberty just for a moment to enter your personal space and see you smiling and taking a sigh of relief.
Don't stop,
Keep going.
Try to relive those beautiful memories.
Who experienced those moments?
Now in this moment let me ask you who is experiencing those feelings?
Who experienced those happy moments and that peaceful state?
I believe you will say it's me.
You are absolutely right.
It is you and it has always been you who experiences the experience.
You might argue that it's not always true because sometimes our close ones,
Family members and friends seems to be the reason for our happiness.
I would say you are partly right but how about seeing them as instruments of your happiness not the source of your happiness.
Does that make sense?
Let's explore.
Have you ever been in the nicest place you could be enjoying the scenery and suddenly received a message that wasn't desirable or pleasant or saw something that conflicted with your values?
What happened at that moment?
How did you feel?
Did it change your current state of upset?
Did you lose interest in what you were doing?
I'm sure many of you would say yes.
Despite being in a beautiful place your happiness suddenly shifted but some of you or many of you have also experienced the opposite where such a message or event didn't change your state at all.
I resonate with both experiences.
I'm not saying those who maintained their happiness are insensitive or uncaring.
It's simply important to learn from them or this might be you in different moments of your life.
To me in the second instance we or they chose not to be swayed by external circumstances and that's the key.
The hidden key to your happiness,
Peace and contentment is your decision to choose them.
You decide whether you want to be happy in that moment and in your life or not.
You always have two choices and your current state of life is the result of the choices you have made.
This doesn't diminish the role of our family and loved ones.
They are integral to how we lead our lives but it's up to us whether we surrender our agency or choose to stay centered instead of wondering,
Feeling lost and asking why does this only happen to me?
Because my friend it's not only you.
This is the story of all of us.
We are all in the same boat experiencing similar things.
The real question now are we ready to acknowledge this?
Are we ready to course correct?
Are we ready to change?
And most importantly are we ready to start?
Start leading a happier,
More peaceful and more content life.
I am with you on this journey cheering for you the loudest.
Let's begin and move towards the life you have dreamt of where you are happier,
More peaceful and more content.
Yours truly.
Thank you.
