I now consider this truth to be Happiness 101, but it’s
amazing how tempting it still is to grasp at control of every
circumstance to try to make sure I get exactly what I want. To
encounter an undesirable situation and work with it willingly
is the mark of a wise and happy person. Imagine getting a flat
tire, falling ill at a bad time, or knocking something over and
breaking it — and suffering nothing from it. There is
nothing to fear if you agree with yourself to deal willingly
with adversity whenever it does show up. That is how to make
life better. The typical, low-leverage method is to hope that
you eventually accumulate power over your circumstances so that
you can get what you want more often. There’s an
excellent line in a Modest Mouse song, celebrating this
side-effect of wisdom: As life gets longer, awful feels softer.
This really is a great truth, I used to feel that because I
did something wrong my life was less valuable. Honestly, now
I see that just because my actions were bad, it doesn't
mean I'm a bad person.
