Daily Inspiration 4-2-15

"Other people's ratings and opinions

are entirely personal to them. 

Taking their advice may cause one

to miss many new joys. 

It is completely beneficial 

to make up one's own mind." 

-- Albert K. Strong 

I saw the preview, I put off ordering it on Netflix. I'm not sure why. Then I ordered it and it arrived, and I let it sit there for a couple of weeks. I almost repackaged it and sent it back unwatched, and then I thought, what the heck, give it a shot, so I just watched, Hector and the Search for Happiness. I see the ratings in a Google search are not kind, but I've seen that before on movies I really enjoyed, and this one was another one of those that I enjoyed very much in spite of the ratings and opinions of others.

The little happiness lessons on Hector's journey are quite interesting and so true. What I liked was that many were different than I might have thought, and one that I want to focus on for a bit here was this: "Sometimes happiness is not knowing the whole story." 

Frankly, I think not knowing the whole story will often be a grand benefit. This allows us to see others as we choose to see them, like looking through the eyes of innocence. It helps us to create a new story, even if it may be a short one. It helps us to see something fresh.

We all have loads of experience, and I could easily call much of that, baggage. So, to see without all of that is of benefit.

Another thing is that it allows us to learn in bits more about another person. I think it is always exciting to get to know someone, to find common threads, and allow a relationship, however brief, to unfold in its own time.

This lesson naturally leads to one of the others: "Making comparisons can spoil your happiness." We are all unique. Being open to a relationship is being open to accepting and appreciating that uniqueness.

Two others stood out for me. One is, "The basic mistake people make is to think that happiness is the goal!" So true. Happiness isn't something we can find, it is something we choose and allow. It's not the pursuit of happiness that matters, it is simply the acceptance of happiness.

The other one is, "Many people see happiness only in their future." There is no future, and there is no past really. There is only now. When the "future" comes it will show up as now. So, hoping for or waiting for happiness in another time and space defeats the whole idea of being happy. There is only one place in time that happy can exist and that is right now, this second, then another, and another, and another.