Want More Happiness in Life? Read This.

​Life is a mess. It’s a bitch and it’s a blessing simultaneously. Some days seem easier than others, and most tend to push us to our boundaries, knocking us down on our asses again and again. What do I suggest we do about it?

Laugh about it. I suggest you learn to laugh at life’s cruel and unusual sense of humour, and especially learn to laugh at our ridiculous selves.
The only reason we don’t laugh at life as often as we could is because we feel inconvenienced.

You see, there’s a silly part of our brain that thinks life should go according to our plans, wishes and timelines all the time, without fail. And when this inevitably does NOT go according to plan, we get really pissed off about it.

Buddha said that attachment is the root of all suffering. Meaning that us being attached to certain outcomes (such as life being an easy, breezy experience all the time) is the only reason we suffer. 

Getting laid off, getting cheated on, stubbing your toe: these are all great examples of things that upset us when they occur. You might say “well of course I’d be upset, why wouldn’t I?” and the answer is simple: because you have a choice to be happy instead.

Anger, sadness and disappointment are all natural emotions, but we don’t need to stay there. We have a choice. And every moment that our heart is beating presents a brand new opportunity to choose love instead. To accept the situation and find the silver lining and lessons in that to help us avoid those situations in the future.

Every single moment of our lives serves us, especially the tough times. That’s where we learn the most, grow the most, and become our utmost badass selves. That’s where we find that sixth gear we never even knew we had. 

So my suggestion for a happy life is to learn to laugh at it. It’s all pretty ridiculous when you think of it. We are the only animals who overanalyze life, who micromanage life, who resist the present moment in a fiece attempt to avoid pain and gain pleasure.

Rather than acting like every other species on this planet who for starters have it a HELL of a lot worse than us (hello predators and real danger!). They also embrace this moment and accept whatever happens. An injured animal does not sit around feeling sorry for itself, it does what it can with what it’s got. If you’ve ever seen a three legged dog you’ll quickly come to realize that humans are the only beings who notice it’s “handicap”, as it doesn’t seem to slow the dog’s enjoyment of life at all.

So the next time life throws you a curveball yell “PLOT TWIST!” and move on. Laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. The pain, the pleasure, the lack of control, the abundance of hurdles. Because if you don’t laugh about it; you cry about it.
Laughing at life won’t make the problems go away, and it won’t make life a cake walk, but it’ll make the journey a hell of a lot more fun and enjoyable. And what more can we ask for than that?

Have fun. Laugh lots. Especially at yourself. Don’t take life too seriously, it’s a big cosmic joke. And you get to choose the punchline.

Sending love, light & laughter,
​-L.K.