Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness...

Last night during choir, we spent a lot of time working on our upcoming patriotic musical. The music in this presentation is awesome - and honestly, there will be something for everyone's taste. I am also doing the narration - which is something I love doing -

In some of the narration - it talks about the "inalienable rights" we are guaranteed by our Constitution - life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I have always thought it interesting that it only guarantees the "pursuit" of happiness - not happiness itself. We can chase after whatever it is that we THINK will make us happy. But have you ever had this happen to you...you put everything into that ONE THING that is going to make you happy - your time, your energy, your whole being...and then, when you finally obtain whatever it is, you find that you really aren't so happy after all, and you are off to chase something else? It has happened to me many times.

Most notably, it has happened to me within the arena of food. I'm upset, so I'll eat, and that will make me feel better. I'm eating out with friends, so if I stuff myself until I hurt - and I will be happy. This ice cream, or cookie, or steak, or biscuit will make me joyful. Only, it never did any of those things. The food I crammed into my body made me gain weight - compromised my health - destroyed my heart - but not once did it ever make me happy.

In reality - there isn't any THING, or any PERSON, for that matter, who can MAKE me happy. I choose to be happy - it is an act of my will. I choose to be happy in spite of unhappy circumstances in my life. That doesn't mean that I don't feel the pain, because I do - sometimes the pain seems more than I can bear. But I can either give in to the pain - and allow it to control my life - or I can set my thoughts on higher things - and find the beauty and contentment and joy. I CHOOSE HAPPY!