Because isn’t it?

Maybe if we think of life this way, we can take everything a little less seriously. Yes, of course, there are serious events that occur in our lives. That’s a given. It can’t be all good all of the time. In the end, though, we always manage to get through it somehow. If we treat the journey more lightly, maybe even like it’s fun, I think we could enjoy it more.

I try to remember this idea when things feel heavy. There’s really no reason to feel that way. Even when we are in pain, grieving, dealing with hardship – we can choose to experience our emotions while understanding that they don’t embody who we are. So often we identify with them. I am pain, I am grief, I am trauma, I can never heal, things can never be any different. Life will always be hard and I just have to slog through it until it’s over.

None of that is true. We are not encompassed by the breadth of our feelings, and life doesn’t have to be some endless depressive episode. If that was the truth, what would be the point of any of us living at all? There would be none. We get the choice to decide how we spend our lives – no matter what’s going on, we are able to choose how we react to it. That is where our power lies. Once we can realize this, it shifts the narrative we carry inside.

What if we can view everything through a lens of adventure and curiosity rather than doom and gloom? What if we don’t take any of it too seriously, aware that everything is constantly changing and every moment must pass? If we truly paid attention to the fact that we aren’t guaranteed anything but what is happening right now, how would that change our approach towards it?

Take a breath. Laugh a little. Play. Lighten the mood. Remember that life is truly only what we make of it, so we might as well make it fun. It’s okay to enjoy yourself! You are awesome and I love you.