Moral lessons for my child, part three

I think this is the third one - I forget. One, many, ...

Anywho. Gabriel, here's another sparkling lesson for you to learn once you're old enough to read.

Happiness comes from within.

Sure, you can buy experiences that will make you happy for a short while (in a variety of forms) - but if you're not happy in general, buying things won't fix that. In fact, it's likely to make it worse, especially if you go into debt (even for a day) to get that fix of whatever.

If you want to be truly happy, be comfortable with your own company. The easiest way to do that is to be honest and decent with those around you - treat people with respect. That way, you'll find that you don't stay awake at night worrying about things you did or said. You should be able to spend a day alone without feeling wierd about it, and you should be able to do things on your own; make a phone call, go shopping, see a movie. Sure, doing those things with company is more fun - but if you can't manage it with just yourself as your crowd, then you'll never be truly happy.

If you want to be truly happy, make sure you can live with the regret you'll get from something that could go wrong. If you can deal with the consequences, do the deed! Never be afraid of taking a chance - but always think it through first. I have plenty of regrets, but if I had to do things again I doubt I'd do much differently. It's better to regret the things you have done than the things you haven't.

If you want to be truly happy, then find the happiness within yourself and give it to others. Even if they don't want to share it with you, it doesn't cost you much.