Chasing Cobwebs

" Happiness is letting go of what you think your life is supposed to look like and celebrating it for everything that it is”- Mandy Hale

Thought Provoking.

One day a fisherman was lying on a beautiful beach, with his fishing pole propped up in the sand and his solitary line cast out into the sparkling blue surf. He was enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun and the prospect of catching a fish.

About that time, a businessman came walking down the beach trying to relieve some of the stress of his workday. He noticed the fisherman sitting on the beach and decided to find out why this fisherman was fishing instead of working harder to make a living for himself and his family. “You aren’t going to catch many fish that way,” said the businessman. “You should be working rather than lying on the beach!”

The fisherman looked up at the businessman, smiled and replied, “And what will my reward be?”

“Well, you can get bigger nets and catch more fish!” was the businessman’s answer.

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman, still smiling.

The businessman replied, “You will make money and you’ll be able to buy a boat, which will then result in larger catches of fish!”

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman again.

The businessman was beginning to get a little irritated with the fisherman’s questions. “You can buy a bigger boat, and hire some people to work for you!” he said.

“And then what will my reward be?” repeated the fisherman.

The businessman was getting angry. “Don’t you understand? You can build up a fleet of fishing boats, sail all over the world, and let all your employees catch fish for you!”

Once again the fisherman asked, “And then what will my reward be?”

The businessman was red with rage and shouted at the fisherman, “Don’t you understand that you can become so rich that you will never have to work for your living again! You can spend all the rest of your days sitting on this beach, looking at the sunset. You won’t care about anything in the world!”

The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, “And what do you think I’m doing right now?”

These are strange times. In our efforts to build a lifestyle of ease, comfort and possible envy, we end up doing more harm to ourselves than good. The misconception is that once we get certain possessions or level of lifestyle, we will finally be happy. Day after day, night after night the dream is to make more money to have a better life.

Unfortunately, that day does not necessarily arrive. Like chasing waves, we always find a new material wave to catch which has only momentary pleasure, till we jump onto another and the mad charade continues. Rings a bell?

In fact, to me happiness does not lie in the future or in gaining a certain lifestyle. Happiness is in the present, because the past is gone and who knows about the future anyway. For me, it’s pretty clear. Human happiness and human contentment comes from within and is not present in outward appearances. It is looking beyond the imperfections, accepting and being grateful for what is, than what is not.  But if you beg to differ, from the definition in my dictionary, let’s try and make it simple.

You do not run after happiness. It is already here.

 The very nature of happiness is self-evident. If you want to be happy, then you need to stop chasing cobwebs. Cobwebs are like dark secrets and clouds of ignorance that enrapture our very being, immobilizing us into meaningless chases. Chasing things that are unwarranted and irrelevant, just like all the materialistic things in the world, things that are trivial, things that do not matter. Ever seen a dog chase his tail? This dark cloud (cobwebs) shields us from seeing the bigger picture that is beyond the material waves we keep dancing for. Perhaps it is time to clear these fruitless chases and use happiness and contentment to clear away the cobwebs of ignorance. Happiness will shine clear.

 Once you stop chasing the wrong things, you give the right things a chance to catch you.

So here are my two cents on things to chase to give a sense of happiness in my dictionary, which may just help you retune your own list.

•  Chase a new comfort zone than chasing security.

A sense of security is a myth. Benjamin Franklin once said that nothing can be certain , except death and taxes. We try so hard to think that we are rallying up our resources to become more secure. Truth be told, we are only fooling ourselves to stay where we are most comfortable. The fear of change is what we are running away from so we blame it on securing a better future. Stop running after material gains and try and raise your own potential and sing to the tune of your heart. Not your wallet size. Have faith. Money will follow through anyway.

•  Chase simplicity . Money can buy you a house but not a home

An interesting research found out that happiness maxes out around $75,000 income per year on average, and after this threshold, people lead a more unhappier existence. Another research showed that people are more happier when spending on others than themselves. Money is important to survive but cannot teach you how to live. Chasing it, is like chasing the wind which you can never catch. Chase your passions and money will come. Chase money and you will never find your passions. Simplify your life to make it a happier one.

• Chase productivity. The business of ambition is a barren business

I have seen far too many times how people just remain discontent with where they are and are too fixated on how others have pushed to greater heights. Its a constant battle of putting onself down and feeling not good enough or else trying to feel better by thinking the other had it too easy. The victimization syndrome kicks in, and the focus remains on feeling sorry for oneself. Its a bottomless pit which breeds discontentment and misery.Take out time for meaningful moments with family, friends and any passions you want to pursue. Accept where you are and let others be. They do not matter. You do. You never know what crosses they carry and other burdens are in their life, no matter how picture perfect their life may be. Acceptance is key here.

• Chase your own approval. Not others validation.

Other people’s approval is another story that does not have a happy ending always. One of the greatest regrets of people on their death bed is that they wished they had the courage to put their foot down and express their feelings rather than trying to keep up pace with others approval. It is hard work and just an extra burden to carry. Happiness is a culmination of small wins along the journey of life. You are your only best friend. Be gentle with yourself. Accept yourself with all the imperfections and then live life at your own terms.

• Chase healthy relationships. Not People

Take time out to build relationships that are sincere, where you can leave your guards down and be your true self. Chasing people for the sake of status quo no matter how they make you feel is a common mistake. These toxic relationships where ones try to control you, stroke your ego , make you feel guilty and and not good enough only make you doubt yourself even more . Distance yourself from such energy vampires and hold onto the goodness of wholesome relationships. Real friends donot need to be chased or be bought by money. Invest in this and happiness will be at your doorstep.

To sum up, you do not need to chase the happiness. It is not something attained or to be caught. It is already at your doorstep and all need to do is open the door. Happiness is a choice. It is not about working now for rewards to be received in the future. Happiness is all about the meanginful choices you make to live a wholesome life today . It never had to do with money and material well being in the first place. It is the joint impact of small grateful and kind acts done to live a meaningful existence.

You deserve to be happy. You deserve to live a life you are excited about.

The happiest people do not have the best of everything. They make the best of everything they have. Dont let others make you forget that. Its time to start chasing the things that really do matter. Things that money can never buy.