Happiness

An amazing letter from Rabbi Vidal Bekerman:
Happiness doesn’t come naturally, and it certainly is no quick fix. It is something that requires constant vigilance and effort on the part of a human being. In fact, I would venture to go so far as to say that the “natural” state of man is to feel heavy, weighed down by all types of concerns. The key is not to dwell on the negative. We all have problems and we all carry our own load. It is no challenge to point out all that is difficult in life. What we were created for is to overcome our obstacles and transform them into opportunities to grow and learn from. As a wise friend told me once – its no kuntz to find the schmutz – the key is to find the gold and the sparkle in everything. Every experience and every event we encounter is an opportunity for us to see the positive and extract it from the experience. We thus reveal that everything is ultimately for the good. In other words, the key to being is happy is to put on a special pair of “happy” glasses which sees the half cup full, not empty.