Happiness

Currently, Andrew and I are en route north at Playa Ventura somewhere between Huatulco and Acapulco. I'm watching the sun rise with a cup of cinnamon coffee, listening to the waves and Marc Cohn, thankful as ever. Pelicans are flying by, low over the ocean. Up, down, side to side, they are in perfect, effortless unison. What a life that must be.

It's funny though, how I have to watch this morning routine of theirs in order to appreciate my own blessings in life. I'm sure somewhere, someone has watched me in the ocean, early in the morning, wishing they had my life as they drank their cup of joe.

In his book, "The Age of Absurdity," Michael Foley translates Jacques Rousseau's vision of happiness: "if you have it, you can't be aware of it, and if you are aware of it, you can't have it." He also makes the point of happiness sometimes being recognized only retrospectively, after it's lost.

It's easy to look in my memory bank to remember some of life's greatest times, but to be present and happy in the moment sometimes slips away from me. Always trying to make something what it used to be, or what it could be, when in reality, I'm going to look back at this morning and realize how perfect it was.

It's a good thing the morning isn't over and I still have time to appreciate it. Life is good, and I'm as happy as I've ever been. Now it's time to swim with the pelicans.

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing."- C.S. Lewis