Life journeys

“Happiness is a choice”

As each group member shared their life journeys, I saw many ups and downs, tears and joys, that made them who they are today. In particular, there were 2 stories that profoundly changed my view towards life.

Mark and Sally (not their real names) are the bubbliest people in the group, always making the most noise, making jokes, and having a smile on their face. It was a great surprise to hear what had happened in their lives before. Mark and Sally came from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, and whose family members suffered from various illnesses. From young, they had to shoulder the burden of taking care of the family on top of normal school work. Sally’s dad left the family when she was very young – her mother went into clinical depression after and later on was diagnosed with cancer. When she was 8, her mother tried to jump off the railing of their HDB flat – she described the incident where she ran to grab hold of her mum before she fell off completely and she imagined that if she didn’t, she would have no parents at all. She made constant trips to the hospital and hence could not concentrate on school work. She also lived under the constant fear of losing the people she loved and hence did not open up to people. She went through a series of broken relationships and ended up more unhappy. However, for both mark and sally, they eventually managed to find their identity through their teachers and a newfound faith in God – they found someone or a being who believed in them and loved them for who they are. This gives them the hope to continue persevering and giving to others though things are still hard. Mark and Sally both shared that happiness is truly a choice – though circumstances can be hard, we can make an active choice to be thankful and content for what we have. Being happy too will bring the same blessing of joy in others.

Personally, I am often more introspective and hence more easily influenced by situations and people. Their experience taught me that the active choice of being thankful and content lends us a certain resilience towards the whims of life. I hope too when I face future failures, and changing or difficult circumstances, that I will choose too to give thanks in each trial and failure, and choose to be happy.