How to be happy: 'Don't boast about your misfortunes'

The language of flowers for the narcissus is 'self-love' and 'vanity'.

While its upright blooming posture is beautiful,
sometimes people hold onto their own pain and suffering
as if it were a badge of honor.

'I have been through so much pain'
'I have endured so much'
'I have suffered for so long'

Of course,
I do not mean to deny
the painful experiences themselves.

It is precisely because we have overcome difficult times
that we can become kinder to others
and notice small happinesses.

However,
when you start treating misfortune like a 'medal',
your heart will gradually become burdened.

In Aesop's Fables,
there is a story about a fox that lost its tail.

A fox got caught in a trap
and lost its magnificent tail.

Feeling ashamed,
the fox said to the other foxes,

'Tails are just a nuisance.
You should all cut yours off too.'

But an old fox replied,

'If you still had your tail,
you wouldn't be suggesting such a thing.'

People who carry pain
sometimes want to justify their own suffering.

'Since I suffered,
you should suffer too.'

'Taking it easy is just being soft.'

'I endured it, too.'

Deep within those words,
there is often a hidden desire
to turn their lost tail into something 'valuable'.

But those who have truly overcome their suffering
do not try to take the tails away from others.

Rather,
I believe they are the kind of people who wish,
'I hope you don't have to go through that.'

Misfortune
is not something to be compared.

Even if you compete over who had it the worst,
you will not get any closer to happiness.

Your difficult past
does not need to be a title that binds you.

'Those days were painful,'
if you can look back on that
and cherish the ability to laugh with someone,
that alone will make life a little richer.

If you can only confirm your own value
by talking about your misfortunes,
your heart will continue to live inside the wounds forever.

That is why what is needed is
not 'how miserable I was',
but 'what kind of happiness I will cultivate from here on'.

Happiness,
I believe, takes shape little by little,
not by the amount of past suffering,
but by whether you can notice the small joys of today.

A book that influenced me in writing this article

You don't have to compare your life with anyone else's

When you feel miserable comparing yourself to others,
this is a book that will help you relax and say,
'I should just live my own life.'
I highly recommend it.

I have compiled other 'ways to be happy' flowers
at the link below.
Please take as many as you need 🍀

Thank you for reading until the end.
I hope to see you in another article.
🍀 May you be happy 🍀