I’ve been writing for the opinion section of the Creightonian for a long time. Since my fall semester freshman year, I’ve been churning out articles week-in and week-out, and as an editor, I’ve sometimes had to craft two masterpieces in one week. 

To facilitate this demand, for years I’ve curated a list of potential ideas. 

Some of the articles on that list were ambitious or spur of the moment. Some were essay topics, and some were mere shower thoughts or observations, like how people seem to prefer carrying multiple belongings in one hand over carrying them split between their hands. 

However, one idea has sat there since freshman year when I got introduced to philosophy, took a critical issues class about political economy and attended extracurricular events on similar topics. 

I was engrossed by these ideas, but eventually those classes ended and that fire within me to write such an article faded. 

Since then, I’ve forgotten what the original argument was going to be, and I’m glad I did because I don’t think it would have been any good. 

A few weeks out from graduation, I think it’s time I revisit that idea for my last ever Creightonian article as I’ve definitely learned a lot since my freshman year. 

I’ve written a multitude of articles about self-help, disguised as interesting observations or thought experiments, and in truth, they were selfishly motivated. Those articles were truly messages to myself, words of affirmation that I wrote to myself as proof that these are things I believe in, these overly optimistic views of the world. 

To be frank though, I think it worked. 

Coming into college, I wanted to shed a version of myself that was overly judgmental and negative.

As a wise man once said with slightly cruder wording, “Life’s too short to be a jerk.” 

It wasn’t that I wished to be more naïve; rather, I wanted to be a source of positivity. Someone who was constantly cracking jokes, having a good time and looking at the bright side so much that something was wrong if I wasn’t doing that. 

After four years, I think I’ve achieved that. 

A couple months ago I was writing an article that had a pessimistic message without the same realist touch that I normally try and add, and it felt off because of it. 

My roommate pointed out that it didn’t sound like something I’d argue. It had finally hit me. That wasn’t who I was anymore. 

Moreover, even on days when I know I’m in a bad mood and things just aren’t quite going my way, whenever I see a buddy approaching me or am greeted by an acquaintance, I can’t help but brighten up.

Without fail, I am now able to flip a switch and become that positive person. 

So, what does my story have to do with pursuing happiness? Well, your happiness is your happiness but only to the extent that you’re happy with the person you are. 

Making sense of that sentence takes a couple things. 

One, it’s important to understand that what makes you happy is unique to you, and two, you need to be content with who you are before you can find that happiness. 

It’s very easy for me to tell you how you should live your life, but unfortunately, what brings me happiness is not what would make anyone else happy. 

If that was the case, the ultimate frisbee club would be popping off even more than it already is. 

The things in life that make you happy are directly related to the experiences you’ve had, and because no one has shared in all the experiences of another, no one has the same definition of happiness. 

However, we all seem to be searching for some happiness, which would probably more accurately be called fulfillment. 

People spout statements all the time about how they want to be like others whose character traits seem superior, and instead of actually changing, they fester in their indignance towards their own stagnation. 

They dismiss these flaws as permanent features or don’t consciously recognize them as flaws, harming their ability to achieve that desired happiness. 

They become complacent. 

To find that happiness, you need to love yourself but also recognize that you are not as prudent as you think. If there’s someone you want to be more like, then put in the work to be more like that person. 

Unfortunately though, no one can force you to do this. You’re on your own when it comes to your quest for fulfillment because that happiness is your own. 

It’s a concept unique to the specific nexus that is your environment. In other words, the best version of yourself is not just your opinion. It’s objective. 

It’s easy to cast it aside though because there’s no immediate incentive to reinforce those strengths and overcome those barriers to your fulfillment, but it’s my firm belief that the same types of people who are unhappy with their lives are those who never stopped to reflect about whether they’re happy with themselves and where their life is headed. 

They never confronted their own flaws and made a concerted effort, and because of this, that happiness remains elusive. 

It’s a gate that leads to a foreign land open only to you, a lifelong adventure that isn’t completed until one moves on from this world. Do you walk through, or do you ignore it until that point where you become regretful? 

The answer is completely up to you.