Life does not promise incessant happiness. There will always be ups and downs. A life without downturns is make-believe and is not conducive to growth. We grow through what we go through, and it involves difficult moments. 

And while our situation will not always be at its best, we can always choose our best attitude to face them. We may not have control over our circumstances, but somehow we can control our temperament. We have a choice.

Do you know that happiness and joy are two different things? Happiness depends on temporal and tangible things. Joy flows from within, and it is often a result of things unseen. Happiness is fleeting, while joy is lasting and is not dependent on circumstances. We are happy when we receive a gift from our loved ones, but joy is when we know that with or without a gift, we have our loved ones around. 

For this post, I'd like to talk about happiness. What we can we do to keep it? Let me share a few ideas.

Do the things you love

Since our happiness is circumstantial, choose to do things that you love. Watch movies, listen to your favorite music, indulge in your favorite dessert, immerse yourself in an interesting book, crochet, hike, bike, or bake! Do what it takes to keep your dopamine high!

As I write this entry, I sing along with The Greatest Showman soundtrack. I so love the songs in the playlist and it imbibes a feel-good attitude. How about you? What do you do that makes you feel good?

Surround yourself with happy people

You are who you are with. It's true. Try spending time with grumpy, complaining people and soon you'll find yourself grumpy and complaining yourself. But be in company with people who see life through a multi-colored lens and with a positive outlook and you're in for a treat. 

Happiness is contagious. Have you watched videos of people laughing for whatever reason? Even if the video is just a plain laughing video with no context, you'll find yourself laughing so hard. That's how happiness works. It spreads like wildfire. 

Protect your peace at all times

Toxicity and "stress-passers" are just around us. They lie in wait to grab our attention and lure us to their menace. But we can always choose to protect our happiness by shutting off toxic people if we can and ignoring their negative influences. As for me, I maximized the use of the unfollow and snooze buttons on my social media feed. 

My mentor said that I deserve what I tolerate. So I try to filter things that come before me. I value my peace and I will not let my precious day be ruined by things that have no real benefit to me.

The danger of toxic positivity

But let's talk about toxic positivity. I acknowledge that life is not always black and white. Sometimes, situations will push me into a gray area. Toxic positivity is trying to maintain a positive mindset even in the midst of a dire situation. It is an obsession with positive thinking. 

As I've mentioned, happiness is circumstantial, and circumstances sometimes ask us to set aside positive thinking to recognize that we need to cry, weep, or mourn. It's part of our makeup as humans. We are not jesters. In fact, even jesters hide their sadness beneath their happy faces.

Choose to be happy! Nothing prohibits us from enjoying our day-to-day activities in the presence of our loved ones. But when the situation calls for us to lay down our happy faces so we can be more "human," please do so. It will help us grow.