The Pursuit of Happiness

Well, with all of the celebration this weekend I was reminded of something out of a movie that refers to the words of the Declaration of Independence, most specifically the unalienable rights that include Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Now if you are like me you had to memorize a paragraph of the Declaration for history class (and you could even get extra credit for memorizing 2 paragraphs!) but after that you never really thought about it too much. Really when you start to think about what is in that document and put yourself in Thomas Jefferson’s shoes trying to write that knowing that it meant you were committing treason, punishable by death, I think you will have a newfound respect and appreciation for what it says.

One thing does stand out, he says the PURSUIT of happiness. How did he have the depth of thought to know that we are not guaranteed happiness? Happiness is something you have to go out and get. It is not tied to how much money you make, how many friends you have on facebook, or what car you drive. It is about loving what you do and striving to do things to the best of your ability. It is about surrounding yourself with people that make you happy. It is about taking every challenge as a gift to become a better person. It is about that feeling you get when you are able to give back to all of those that have helped you along the way and planting trees that you will never sit in the shade of.

There are some things that we will pursue and will never get. Sometimes it will be things that we think we need in order to be happy, when in fact we have all we need, now it is just about attitude and outlook. I am so lucky to live in a country where we have these rights and everyone has the ability to pursue the “American Dream.” I thank every soldier who ever served, every Rosie the Riveter who stood beside my Grandma to produce airplanes for the war effort, every uniformed officer that works to preserve our peace and protect our neighborhoods, and every working person in this country that is fighting to provide for their family so that they can have their own “pursuit.”

I think it is important for all of us to not get lost in the fireworks, barbeques, and adult beverages and remember what it is that we are celebrating on the 4^th day of July every year. We celebrate the courage of our founding fathers that took a stance for what they believed was right. We celebrate all of our ancestors that have served our country in some form or another, as well as all of those that serve us now today. Together they have helped to shape a country that provides all of its citizens with the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

God Bless America.