Wisdom of Life: Reflections on Existence and Happiness
Life is like a kaleidoscope, where joys, sorrows, sweetness, and bitterness always accompany us. There is no need to dwell too much on them; life is like a dream. We should look past everything, including past pains, and cherish and treat ourselves well.
Life requires play, but one must not play with life; it requires dance and song, but not a life of drunken oblivion; it requires art, but not opportunism; it requires courage, but not recklessness; it requires repetition, but not repeating old mistakes. If you treat work as enjoyment, you will give your all; treat life as fun, and you will be full of confidence; treat reading as growth, and you will work hard; treat giving as joy, and you will be generous.
No one is immune to loneliness; rather than escaping it, it is better to face it. Loneliness is not a terrible thing; compared to the clamor of the world, loneliness is quiet and self-contained, which can even be a form of enjoyment. A person's own world is their true world. How pleasant it is to brew a pot of tea, listen to beautiful music, and read a book in silence; how wonderful it feels when the afternoon sun warms your body. Just as we live in a world that is not always as we wish, we may sway when dark clouds gather, but the sun will eventually shine. When it arrives, embrace the sunlight, breathe in its unique fragrance, and let your heart become as bright as the sun.
A human life is like a single day: the morning brings dawn, and the evening brings darkness. Life has its depths and shallows, its rises and falls, changing through different stages with different colors. Both sunny and rainy days are essential paths. If you understand this, you will remain composed.
In our youth, we possess vibrant energy and a heart full of curiosity, which often allows the temptations of life to slip in and capture us. Gradually, we drift away from reality, enveloped by an invisible, illusory world, leading to deep contradictions and a sense of lost direction in life.
The years have their seasons, and people have their emotions. The best way to be happy is to forget unpleasantness, and the best way to be blessed is to forget misfortune. We must not forget the lessons of failure, but we should forget the pain of failure. Happiness belongs to those who are good at forgetting unpleasantness, and blessings belong to those who are good at forgetting misfortune. Dwelling on unpleasantness only brings pain, and dwelling on misfortune only brings sadness. By letting go of what is lost and appreciating what is possessed, one can find true happiness.
Because of life, some people choose to cry despondently, while others choose to smile positively. Although life itself is full of bitterness and various flavors, it has not failed us; at the very least, it has given us life and the space to exist. Therefore, there is no need to always wear a bitter expression or a face full of tears.
Excellent people radiate an attractive brilliance that draws you in and attracts others with similar appreciation. Much like a beautiful landscape, its existence is not just for a single mountain or field, but for the entire nature—to embellish this beautiful world and allow more people to appreciate, savor, and find joy in it.
Sometimes, we feel our lives are not happy enough, believing others live more prosperous and sweet lives, and we often use their happiness as a model. However, we eventually discover that this kind of happiness—the kind involving chasing, seeking, and loving others—has no model to follow and is often elusive, sometimes even causing unnecessary trouble.
Sometimes we wish to live more freely and happily, appearing calm on the surface while feeling turbulent inside. We envy the composure of others and long to be our true selves, but in reality, who can truly achieve such a state?
One will not suffer by learning to let go; one will not regret by being moderately content; one will not feel resentment by remembering gratitude; and one will not feel guilt by learning to cherish. In life, seek satisfaction in calmness, peace of mind in responsibility, joy in dedication, and happiness in loyalty.
In life, there is a kind of love called a smile. This love is like a ripe fruit hanging on a branch, allowing you to pick it freely and fill your bag with love. This love is an attitude and a state of mind; it has no necessary connection to wealth, status, or circumstances.
Cherish every little thing bestowed by God; treat yourself well so that your heart always has a clear sky illuminated by sunlight; treat yourself well and look past current pains, for happiness may lie just beyond them.
Life is only understood through experience, and only through understanding can we learn to cherish. In a lifetime, there will always be someone who makes you smile the sweetest, and someone who makes you feel the deepest pain. Forgetting is the best way to treat yourself.
What is happiness? Happiness is a pleasant psychological state and feeling. Those who can find joy in everything and everyone are the happiest. Those who smile often are the most blessed.
Everything can be lost, but dignity must be kept; everything can start anew, but life cannot; everything can be cast aside, but faith must remain; everything can be accepted, but humiliation must not. You can forget failure, but not the lesson; you can forget yesterday, but not history; you can forget hardships, but not the struggle; you can forget scars, but not the shame.
In life, many things and emotions occur without reason and require no explanation. Love is simply love, and liking is simply liking; even without a result, one can be willing and without regret.
A light greeting is a simplicity; a silent hand-hold is a simplicity; a turning glance is a simplicity; a warm word is a simplicity; a cozy home is a simplicity; a silent gaze is a simplicity; a thin coat in the cold, a glass of cool water in the heat—all are simplicities; a smile upon meeting, the companionship of years, and the waiting within time—all are simplicities.
Let us light a stick of incense to calm our hearts weary from life. Find a shaded place to slowly savor this changing, beautiful, yet difficult life. The beauty of life will become eternal in your fleeting moments of realization.
In life, responsibility is tested by great or difficult matters, and breadth of mind is tested by adversity or prosperity; temperament is tested by joy or anger, and wisdom by gain or loss; persistence is tested by success or failure. Walk the right path, let go of non-essential things, make virtuous friends, avoid unrighteous ones, drink pure tea, abstain from excessive indulgence, open doors of convenience, and close the mouth of contention.
