Happiness is a Matter of Choice #HappinessProject

One of the happiest moments in my life: riding Gajah Bledug in Dufan

There are a million reasons to be sad: breaking up with your significant other, losing a pet, being broke and tied in debt, having to be away from your family, Gaza war, starvation in Africa, et cetera, et cetera. When something bad happens to you, you may feel like the sky is falling, the world is crumbling down, your life is shattered into pieces, and the universe is so unfair. I know. I’ve been there before. And yes, I agree that it feels like nothing in this world can beat you in the Pain Olympics. What you experience is the worst.

And of course it’s perfectly fine to feel so. Pain is a part of learning who you are. It is a part of growing up; a test to assess your worth. It is the gate to happiness, and as God has promised, there will be a relief for every pain.

But please bear in mind that happiness is just a matter of choice. All the heartbreaks I’ve ever experienced have taught me that the key to happiness is believing that you are, indeed, happy. Once you’ve chosen happiness, the wall of sadness that’s been built around you will start breaking down. You will be able to see that the sun is still shining, the wind is still blowing, the world is still turning, and most importantly, you’re still alive! You survived the pain, passed the test, and now you’re one step closer to wisdom. Nobody can guarantee that you will never experience any more heartbreaks, but darling you’ve beat one helluva pain, any other pain will be a piece of cake for you from now on. You’re stronger now.

And at that moment, you will see that God never breaks His promises.

#HappinessProject is a project held by Hijabers Community Jakarta. The main event, called Hijab Day 2014, will be held on 27 April 2014 at Mall Gandaria City. See their blog for more details.