Head-dibs

Seneca asked, “How does it help to make misfortune heavier by complaining about it?” Another way to ask this would be, “Did complaining help? Then stop. If not, then stop.” I manage a staff of mostly young adults who are like sponges as they listen to elder employees complain and complain and complain. I confess, there are times when I complain as well, but then I am aware of who is listening. One older fellow always has something to say, dropping his comments like little bombs then walks away thinking all his words are going to change anything. But then he only walks away because I’ve asked him, “did all that help? No? Then you can stop now.” Complaining does nothing but reveal who a person really is, and for the most part, complaints merely mean there has been a disruption to one’s comfort zone, that something is beyond their control or that the person feels entitled and is not getting their way. Ever notice how most complaining at a restaurant is committed before eating? People are ...

"If you would improve, lay aside such reasonings as these: 'If I neglect my affairs, I shall not have a maintenance; if I do not punish my servant, he will be good for nothing.' For it were better to die of hunger, exempt from grief and fear, than to live in affluence with perturbation; and it is better that your servant should be bad than you unhappy. Begin therefore with little things. Is a little oil spilled or a little wine stolen? Say to yourself, 'This is the price paid for peace and tranquillity; and nothing is to be had for nothing.' And when you call your servant, consider that it is possible he may not come at your call; or, if he does, that he may not do what you wish. But it is not at all desirable for him, and very undesirable for you, that it should be in his power to cause you any disturbance." (Epictetus, Enchiridion 11) They got it pretty close: peace of mind does not depend on circumstances or other people. So, are you happy? Conten...

"And now, O son of Axiochus, let me put a question to you: Do not all men desire happiness? And yet, perhaps, this is one of those ridiculous questions which I am afraid to ask, and which ought not to be asked by a sensible man: for what human being is there who does not desire happiness?" (Socrates to Clinias, son of Axiochus) First, I am glad to report the storm is over. The last day and a half passed in the quiet lumbering drift of a weakening storm. Watching the rainfall, I was reminded of that kind of snowfall that silently drifts in heavy flakes, nearly obscuring a longer view. It fell with little sound, almost like a mist--only it wouldn't stop. (Someone posted on Facebook, "I refuse to mark myself safe from mist"). Just as there were no deep drifts to plow through, so the fallen water had just enough time to pass over the ground, finding its lowest point in the stream some hundred yards or more down the hill. No flooding in our neighborhood. We we...

''True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not.'' (Seneca)

The past few days we have given thought to the subject of "happiness" based on Book 3 of Boethius' " Consolation of Philosophy ." At this point one begins to wonder if it is possible for man to find happiness at all. Wealth is powerless to deliver on it's promises; honor and fame not only borrowed but are also not universally recognized; and the only land a man truly possess is his burial plot. But have all these desires and seem to experience something called, "happiness." "Waiting For Godot" by Samuel Beckett If we step back and consider true happiness, we realize we find it at that moment when all things are balanced together, a unified whole. This returns us to the definition of happiness Lady Philosophy offers at the very beginning: "a state which is made perfect by the union of all good things." Let me illustrate: One person is happy to sit on the couch and drink his tea.  Another person is happy to sneak up ...

"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” (C.S. Lewis, The Weight Of Glory, 1941) What brings happiness? In previous posts we've defined happiness and have put many sources of happiness to the test and so far, we're still trying to discover the answer to this age-old question. "HOW MUCH LAND DOES A MAN NEED?" The great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy answers that question in his short story published in 1886. Pakhom supposes that if he had enough land, life as a peasant farmer would be over--including his fear of the devil himself. Through a series of moves Pakhom begins to acquire land but he is not satisfied with so little--he wants more! In a business deal that's almost too good to be true, Pakhom pays 1,000...

If happiness is the acquisition of the highest good, how do we find happiness in that which is not the highest good? How have we become "far too easily pleased"? As we think about this, let's discover if money can bring happiness. Here's a song:   "Money, get away Get a good job with good pay and you're okay Money, it's a gas Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash New car, caviar, four star daydream Think I'll buy me a football team . . .  Money, it's a crime Share it fairly but don't take a slice of my pie Money, so they say Is the root of all evil today But if you ask for a rise It's no surprise that they're giving none away."   Does money buy happiness? Pink Floyd gives us both sides of the proverbial coin in their 1973 hit. Since nothing's new under the sun, Pink Floyd echoes the truth that Lady Philosophy was trying to impart to Beothius nearly 1500 years previous: if you accumulate all you c...

Yesterday we thought about happiness and found that the first state of all things is the highest good  of all things. In other words, the first state of all creation is happiness. When reading and thinking of The Bird for yesterday's post, the following poem came to mind and I feel I would be remiss if I did not stop to allow the poem to elaborate on that picture of the happiness of The Bird. (Side note: might there be more to Skynyrd's "Freebird" than meets the eye ear?). Caged Bird (by Maya Angelou) A free bird leaps on the back of the wind and floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun rays and dares to claim the sky. But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing. The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the cag...

My first pet was a dog named Rusty. I think was three. I may have done something three-years-oldish to the dog, but all I remember is that he bit my face and I never saw him again. Then there was Petey, a parakeet. Had him a long time. One Sunday morning we were walking out the door on the way to church when he fell off his perch, dead as a door-nail. He’s buried in the woods somewhere in Texas. My parents had a dog names “Whiskers.” Drove me nuts. Now there are three cats in the house: a massive pure white cat named “Runt” (he was the runt of the litter), “Buddy,” a jet black cat who thinks he rules the world, and “Lilly,” the blondest a cat can possibly be. She’s alright. Runt keeps to himself, which is good. And Buddy . . . what can I say? “Get down!” “Stop that!” Things like that, I suppose. photovide.com What makes an animal happy? For Buddy, it’s food in all three bowls (he’ll clink them together with his paw if low or empty). A dog? Whatever makes his tail wag perhaps. ...

We talk and hear much about happiness today but what is happiness that so many are eager to pursue it? What is unhappiness? How does one know if he or she is unhappy if one does not know what happiness is? What words or terms come to mind when thinking of happiness? Delight. Joy. Freedom from care, pain, sorrow, want. Contentment. I don’t like how the dictionary defines happiness: “the state of being happy.” That doesn’t tell me what happiness is. Is happiness a destination or a by-product?  Is happiness a choice? Is happiness good health?  Is happiness a person? or people?  Is happiness a warm donut? A warm puppy? A Warm Gun? [ Original song from The Beatles' White Album ] In Book 3, Prose 2 of Boethius’ “ Consolation of Philosophy ,” The Love of Wisdom (“philosophy”, personified as a lady in white) defines happiness as “a state which is made perfect by the union of all good things.” A much better definition. In other words, happiness is attaining the highes...

“Is this your first entrance upon the stage of life? Are you come here unprepared and a stranger to the scene? Think you that there is any certainty in the affairs of mankind, when you know that often on swift hour can utterly destroy a man?” (Beothius, " Consolation of Philosophy ," Book 2, Prose III)* The allegorical “Lady Philosophy” sitting on the edge of despairing Boethius’ bed asks if he just fell off the proverbial turnip wagon. He’s not a young man (most likely middle-aged) who has been digging himself an emotional hole from which “the love of wisdom” is trying to raise him. He’s up to his proverbial eyeballs in a veritable “slough of despond,”** the quicksand of despair, worrying over his loss of fortune. Truth be told, that’s the way the big wheel spins when it comes to fortune. “Wheel goes round, landing on a leap of fate Life redirected in ways unexpected Sometimes the odd number wins The way the big wheel spins” (Rush, “ The Big Wheel ”) Lad...

The smartest thing I did today was to set my mind (no matter how I felt or what the day would bring) to have a good day and pursue happiness. Even if that happiness is found in one miniscule thing that nobody notices (my happiness is not theirs nor is their happiness mine), I would do something for myself that brings me happiness, gives me contentment and pleasure. I’ve wasted to much time being angry, depressed, worried and life is not slowing down. Each “tomorrow” plods along in its petty pace from day to day. The earth does not slow its orbit and we take yet another round about the sun--so why waste any more time? What will it take to be happy, even if for a moment? Most often (for me, at least), happiness follows when I do something different, something that is not normal. Something a little crazy. Something that pushes my “red line”, that internal border that says, “here and no further.” Most frequently, those moments are found when I completely break out of my routine. I sit...

What is "happy"? As I've been examining my heart concerning some weighty matters, I found myself asking this question (perhaps too deeply, some might suggest) when I first inquired concerning my personal happiness. Where is the best place to look for a meaning of the word "happy?" Philosophy, psychology, biology, religion? My grandmother taught me to begin with a dictionary, so to this we will go. "Happy" is an adjective. Remember: adjectives are words that are used to describe (insert Schoolhouse Rock song here). The root word, "hap" can be a noun or a verb. Old Middle English definitions include "luck, chance, fit [as in "appropriate" or "convenient"], victory." More commonly "hap" can be understood to mean, "an occurence, accident" (older generations used to refer to "happy accidents," which suggests a redudancy for the sake of emphasis). The root word ("hap")...

With all due respect to the Kenyan student who asked the question, the answer is found in the preceding statement: "happiness comes from God;" in other words, "the devil cannot give happiness." Let us first consider who the devil is, and what he brings to the table. Jesus describes Satan as " a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. " (John 8:44) Satan, the murderer brings truthlessness. So if Satan comes along and says, "this will make you happy," can he be speaking the truth? Notice Satan is also called the devouring enemy. " Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour ." (1 Peter 5:8) If Satan comes around offering happiness, remember that he is not coming as my friend, with any best interest in mind. " Satan himself masquerades as an ang...