第11章 The Paradox of Happiness (5)(3 / 3)

the

point

has

been

missed:

Happiness

is

already

there.

Disappointments

and

tragedies

in

life

will

come

and

go,but

happiness

never

leaves

you.

The

human’s

capacity

to

be

resilient

to

trials

is

unfathomable.

We

can

lose

our

jobs,but

be

grateful

for

our

spouses.

We

can

lose

our

homes

to

nature,but

be

thankful

to

be

alive.

Happiness

is

a

perception

of

each

individual.

We

are

instinctively

compelled

to

find

fault

in

our

lives.

By

human

nature,we

begin

our“fault-finding”mission

the

moment

we’re

capable

of

free-thinking.

It

is

then,that

we

lose

sense

of

self-worth

and

the

bigger

picture

of

vitality

altogether.

Stuck

in

the

patterns

of

the

happiness

paradox,we

simply

cannot

find

where

our

happiness

has

gone.

It’s

not

a

matter

of

bargaining,it’s

not

an

issue

of

money

or

fame-

instead,happiness

is

what

you

resolve

to

accept.

If

we

live

through

optimistic

hope;if

we

dare

to

dream;if

we

empower

ourselves

to

fully

live;then

we

have

regained

our

sense

of

happiness.

There

is

no

in

between.

There

is

no

other

replacement.

We

only

have

one

physical

life

to

live-

we

have

no

choice

but

to

make

the

most

of

it.

矛盾幸福感

蒂莫西

“幸福”是什麼?幸福是擁有豪華的汽車、理想的居室、名貴的裘皮和珠寶等物質上的富足嗎?或者,簡單的隻是有個遮風避雨的住所,冰箱裏有食物,有孩子、寵物、遊泳池、個性的包,有父母、子孫、有愛情、金錢和理想的工作,彩票中獎了呢?

在《美國傳統字典》中,幸福是從中古英語“Hap”一詞演變而來的。“Hap”意為“好運”。但是,幸福真的與“好運”有關聯嗎?基於此,想想看,如果你在一場必死無疑的交通事故中幸免於難,卻因此遲到,導致被老板炒魷魚。對此,你會感到“幸福”嗎?這是好運嗎?還是要看個人如何看待這個問題呢?或許,確切地說,幸福的定義應當直接從它的詞源來看--事實上,幸福或許就是命中注定要發生的事情。

你能回憶起你5歲時對幸福的理解嗎?那時,幸福是從聖誕樹上摘下的一隻小狗嗎?或者爸爸媽媽離婚了,你唯一的願望就是他們能和好如初,重新生活在一起?當你漸漸長大,你希望有人會邀請你參加舞會,希望所有的日子都凝固在那一天、那一刻。上大學期間,考試得了高分讓你無比開心,但這種幸福感都是短暫的。因為在現實中,你得找一份工作,而社會競爭也相當激烈。於是,你就會想,這是一個雇主的世界。隨後,你找到了一份理想的工作--現在的你很開心,是嗎?

生活向我們索要的遠比我們想要的多。一個人必須明白,要想真正找到幸福,他就必須讓自己幸福。可能聽起來有些多餘,但確是如此--生活中,沒有能帶來幸福的現成指南,也沒有揮一揮就能帶來歡樂的魔棒。人性在追求幸福的刺激中不斷升級、完善。我們夢想著、期望著下一個大的轉變--這就是生活中的大冒險了。