KNOWING HAPPINESS

TODAY'S QUOTE:
In order to have great happiness you have to have great pain and unhappiness - otherwise how would you know when you're happy?... Leslie Caron

The contrast between the polar opposite ends of any emotion is a measuring point of reference that contains everything that's ever happened in our lifetime and how we felt at the exact point of each impact. Bad or good it's all recorded there in a kind of auto save mode for easy access. Dealing with it isn't mandatory, unless you hunger to become more than simply a sum total of a series of knee-jerk reactions to random events as they occur.

Our scar tissue should serve as a mighty reminder of just how far we had to crawl to be within reach of even the most imperfect balance between happy and sad. The more pain on the one end, the more joy on the other. No matter what else we do it's important to keep our point of view as crystal clear as humanly possible. We shouldn't franticly search for or cling desperately to either extreme. Our reality is colored and twisted so easily by the extremities of simply living... no need to confuse any situation by letting a desperate need slap rose colored glasses where a magnifying glass would better serve us. 

Someone who almost drowns develops a heightened love for solid ground than most of us ever experience. Facing death head on makes every moment precious, but it isn't only the threat to our life span that inspires hyper sensitivity. Any sort of soul-sickness... heart breaks... or mental anguish can inspire the same kind of personal growth and awareness. The unhappy times in our lives teach us so much about what we need and don't need to be happy. The positives we reap from our negatives are some of the most profound truths we ever encounter. And that's a good thing to remember when our hands get sweaty from clinging onto either end of the see-saw we erect with our choices. To avoid splinters pump the brakes a bit before simply giving into the urge to react. Instant responses too often inspire hasty overreactions that are almost impossible to control.      

Slipping one way or the other is simply part of life. The trick is to control our emotions enough to counter balance any unexpected vibrations from either end. If we throw our arms up in the air and attempt to ride this slick slide from side-to-side the force of any sudden movements may fling us off one end or the other. Without demonstrating any self-control we risk becoming manic-depressive by default to a degree equal to the force used at launch and whichever end we happen to land upon.

To suddenly find yourself even temporarily unraveled is a most unpleasant sensation. A self-administered overdose of one intense emotion or the other isn't any true measure of anything except stupidly. A cocky ego's urge for testing its talent for bull-riding should never be encouraged, or tallied up to prove a point. Find your perfect balancing point then don't cut your nose off to spite your face next time greedy negative emotions attempt to kidnap your positive intentions. Think about it... let it ride... then decide!!!