The ambition of happiness
Saturday, six in the morning and I lie in bed wide awake. Some people may call this frustrating, but I love it. For me being able to get up early in the morning gives me the opportunity to watch the early morning sun with a cup of tea while the world around me is still fast asleep. My phone remains silent and I don’t need to worry about people trying to reach out to me. It’s time to just be me and enjoy the time I have. Maybe even sit down and start writing my blog. During the week I scribble down some words in my notebook while I sit on the train to work, but this just ends up being a patchwork of texts and words representing a small part of who I am. On the one hand I realise how lucky I am, on the other hand I feel lost in a society that dominates life every step along the way. I want to truly feel life, not be numb to the world around me. Nothing makes a day more beautiful than sharing a smile with a stranger and getting a glimpse of a life that isn’t yours. I don’t want television to tell me about the world we live in. We all know they only tell us part of the truth. Of course, all these things are not ambitious. Apparently, to be ambitious you need to aim for the best job, make sure to get a big house and have a life filled with luxury. In these times I think it would be good to reframe this word, ambition. Maybe it would be better to aim for a happy and fulfilled life and call that ambitious. Maybe, ambition shouldn’t be related to money and power. Maybe, being happy with who you are and what you do is truly ambitious. It for sure isn’t an easy thing. It’s a constant battle to look inwards instead of to the world surrounding you. We live in a hard world and the battle for happiness isn’t an easy one. So many people in society fail while giving all they have. Don’t fail. Be ambitious and aim for whatever life feels right for you. People will try to stop you, people may have a good reason to hold you back, but you will never know if you don’t give it a try. Don’t sit back and except what is. Choose for what may be.
Often when you are happy with who you are and your own personal values… along comes power whether you want it or not.
I thought about your words for quite some time and somehow I have to agree. Being happy with who you are gives you power as you lose self-doubt and know what your goals are. At the same time I would say it may reduce the urge to exert power over others. Power is such a vast word I suppose much depends on a personal definition of what power comprises.