Pursuit_of_Happiness

Is the pursuit of happiness the most important goal in life or is it just selfish' I once was told that the average person thinks about happiness at least twice a day. It's only 9pm and I can already tell you that I've been happy and unhappy many times today. If I asked a group of people what they wanted most out of their lives for themselves or their family, whether for tomorrow or the rest of your life, most people would say happiness. Some might say money, but only because they think money will make them happy. Yes, money can buy things that will provide you with brief happiness, but for true happiness, I believe, you have to be focussed on it for the majority of your life. Aristotle once said, "Human happiness is so important it transcends all other worldly considerations." If the meaning of life was to be completely one hundred percent happy; forget about all your goals and plans, the only thing you have to attempt to do is to be happy: happy in your life, your relationships, your family, your home, your job... but then of course you would only have a job and a family because they make you happy by providing money, a social group and companionship. It is interesting that seeking personal satisfaction in every aspect of our lives seems unrealistic. Isn’t that what life is about' We are on this Earth for a finite amount of time, time which we can never regain no matter how hard we try & for no amount of money. Each moment that slips by is another moment gone. Why should we accept our lives the way they are if we are not satisfied or if we are unhappy' It makes no sense to spend life knowing that we could be doing better for ourselves, yet making a conscience decision not to. Is the pursuit of happiness really the most important goal in life' Why would someone not work at a job that provides him/her self with satisfaction and allows more time with his/her children' Maybe because he/she would get less money and therefore not be able to afford everything he/she wanted to buy, including his/her children’s education, and therefore he/she would not be truly one hundred percent happy. Some use the excuse: “providing as well as we could for our families”. This, however, is nothing more than showing a reluctance to change our state of affairs onto our families. Instead of determining the real reason we don’t chase our dreams, possibly fear or lack of self-confidence, it is easier to use a socially satisfactory justification such as “family”. Using ones family as the basis for staying in a job which makes one unhappy is effectively saying that one’s family is the reason for one’s unhappiness. “I hate working for this company but I continue with it because of my family.” Life is short, life is limited. Man and life as we know it is just a small blink in existence of time. We all ought to be happy, no matter what it is that makes one happy as an individual. Maybe supporting for your family in comfort is what makes you happy. What I see as being selfish is blaming our views of inadequacies on someone or something else. It all falls into our hands. We make the choice to pursue our objectives, our contentment, and our happiness.