Life is whatever you make of it, within the constraints of God-given abilities and the natural limitation common to all. Some have additional burdens and some have additional blessings. We all missed the Golden Age, whenever THAT was. The trick is to understand that Happines is NOT something to be pursued but the by-product of doing good and useful things we enjoy doing. You CANNOT let Hollywood define what it takes to be happy and really, you can't let anyone other than YOU make that definition. Expectations kill happiness. Let life surprize you. Look for the good. Look for the humor in the situation. Get outside yourself and help somebody else. Learn something new. Teach somebody something new.

What I gleaned in the opening thread was that it easy to be unhappy. All you have to do is envy everyone else. And then you can waste your life worrying about what sombody else may or may not be thinking about you. Then again the are a lot of people out there with so much time on their hands they have nothing better to do than go about sticking their long critical noses into other peoples lives. Avoid these people at all costs and avoid the angry person.

If you find that the happy moments are few and far between, that's OK. It helps you realize how precious Happines is and may you memorize those moments and cherish them. Let them warm you, amuse you. comfort you and strenghten you. When you come to the end of your days you will know that you have truly lived, you've blessed others and helped to make this old world a happier place.