Tuesday, June 28, 2011

The Happiness of Pansies


The pansies in a pot on my front step are looking rather bedraggled now. After 5 days of rain, summer heat has arrived, and the cool-weather pansies have their tongues hanging out.

In April, i depend on pansies for a spot of color, and they bloom sweetly all the way through May, but now, they are leggy and lost in the lushness of June.

In April, the pansies' smiling faces make me so happy. Now i barely notice them, and when i do, i frown at their deadheads and long-legs. That which was pleasant becomes unpleasant.

Where does true happiness reside?
Are we content with the perpetual chase for pleasantness?
Does pleasantness = happiness?

The pansies and the outer world are in a constant state of flux. Our happiness cannot depend on ever-changing outer conditions, which shift from pleasant to unpleasant and back again moment to moment.

Happiness lies inside us when we see and accept things as they really are. Pansies blossom and die. Can we find our peace of mind right there?

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