Life Leases

Happy is the most overused and misused word I possess in my vocabulary. I'm happy about it. I'm happy for you. I'm happy it happened. I'm happy it's over. 

I'm happy it's Friday. I'm happy it's Spring. I'm happy we're friends. I'm happy it's on it's way. 

  I'm happy. Happy. So stinkin' happy.

It's like one of those words you write over and over again until it doesn't look like a real English word anymore.

But I think happy gets thrown around like a can of primer sometimes. Pretty basic, nice clean coat, but intended to cover up a base of colorful, or ugly things that we're sick of seeing and thinking about.

In my opinion, there are three types of happiness.

Number one: borrowed happiness. This version seems to come around when life punches us in the face and we don't want anyone to see our black eye because we're embarrassed. So, we hang out with large groups of people at every opportunity. We laugh our heads off at everything. Everything. But we do not talk about ourselves, not for one second. If the subject comes up, we're doing great. We're doing fine. Now hand me another drink, because I don't want to be sober when reality walks in here.

Number two: rented happiness. This guy comes in handy best when we're lonely or bored or feeling numb from the punch to the face. So, we buy things. We buy food, we buy clothes, some of us go as far to buy a Maserati or a new pool. But we buy until the money is spent, because that ten second thrill at a checkout counter is better than the other option of nothing. And when the money is gone, we can sit in our treasure pile and count our belongings until we realize: you can't take it with you. And did having it actually ever fix a thing?

So I've been a bit dreary up to this point, but honesty is not always eating rainbows and pooping butterflies: but you're in luck. Because there is a third option.

Owning your happiness. 

Owning your happiness is hard. There are ups, and there are downs. Sometimes the market sucks. Sometimes you need to do repairs. Sometimes you need to 'hire' (aka: marry) a partner because the job is too hard to do on your own. But it is yours. No one can take it from you. But you have to be honest about it, this owned happiness. Because the lifetime guarantee comes with a stipulation: no masks allowed. So when you're down, be down. And when you're happy, be happy.

But be the real kind. Because the people who truly love you- they want to hold you in your good and in your bad. But they want to hold YOU. The real you.

So be happy. But own it. Don't fake it for a second, because life is too messy to pretend it's perfect, but it's also too short to not be ourselves.

Love,

Chloe