I have a hard time staying grateful. It's not that I don't have a lot to be grateful for, I do. It's just that like most people, I am almost constantly looking forward, thinking about the future.
When you're growing up they're always telling you that you need to think about the future. Well, I am here to tell you that they are wrong.
First: When you are young, the last thing you should be doing is worrying about your future, and when they say 'thinking' they actually mean 'worry'. Kid's shouldn't 'worry' about anything. You only have your one childhood to be carefree. Your whole adult life will more than likely be filled with angst, no need to rush into it. Not to mention you're a kid. What the hell do you know about planning for the future anyway? No, what they are really telling you is that you should be planning for the future that they think you should have. Oh yeah? Well if you feel so strongly about it, you do the fucken planning then, I'm going outside to play. And kids, for the record, that is where playing is done, outside. Not inside some dark room with a computer, there will be plenty of time for that later on.
Second: When was the last time something worked out the way you planned it? That's right, never. Well get used to it, because there's a lot more of that coming. Planning is for pregnant women and fools. You can 'plan' all you want to, and the world will still throw you a curve. You know what you should plan for? Not knowing what the fuck is goin' on, 'cause that's what's gonna happen. I 'planned' on being a rockstar with an eight-pack that had hot wings smuggled to his jacuzzi inside the bikinis of Russian supermodels. Most of that didn't pan out. Thank God I at least got the hot wings. My point is, what I have is better than that. (my wife reads these.) And you can't know how happy something that you never dreamed of will make you.
Too much planning sets you up for failure. Now I'm not suggesting you just plop down on the couch and wait for the good times; a little hard work goes a long way. But if you have a roof over your head and some food in the fridge, and if you have a job and even a couple of friends...you're doin' alright. The truth is, most of us have much more than this and yet very few of us feel 'happy'.
I see people everyday that make me glad I'm me. Also, there is joy in the little things, if you know where to look. Yesterday, on my way home from work, I saw two guys struggling to push a van uphill into a gas station. I asked if they needed a hand, and they said yes. The three of us tried, but weren't making much more progress than before. Just as we were about to stop pushing, three women joggers from the park across the street ran up and helped give it the extra shove it needed, and we all rolled it into place together. As soon as it was in front of the pumps, everyone went their separate ways, being thanked by the driver, but of course, wanting nothing in return. I can't tell you how good I felt after that. And it stuck with me. If you think you're different than your neighbor, you're wrong. If you think we aren't all connected, you're wrong. If you think you can't make yourself happy by helping someone else...you are wrong.
You probably have more than enough already in your life to be happy. You probably know others that have much less. There are probably people in your life that you could help with a little effort. It would probably make you feel happier if you did.
"Don't worry, be happy." Bobby McFerrin
