Choices

Someone very close to me recently asked "Would you rather be rid of this disease and live to be 100 but in a miserable relationship and unhappy with your life, or would you rather be happy but have the disease and only three years to live?" The real question is would I choose happiness and a short life over misery and a long life.

It's a difficult question because there are so many other issues to consider. How does my happiness weigh against the responsibilities I have to my family? Is that kind of unhappiness pervasive or could I find things to be happy about? Is happiness pervasive or transient?

Oddly enough, even with these other questions, I was able to answer quickly. I would trade a long, unhappy life away in exchange for a short, happy life. Living an unhappy life is a thousand deaths. The pain of unhappiness is like dying every waking moment. And while my life will be shorter than I hoped, I certainly want it to be happy.

This is simply a philosophical thought exercise. Of course there will come a time when this is the only exercise I can do, when my body fails and I can only think about these things. It's good to start practicing these thought exercises early so that when I get there I can understand their real importance.

We make choices. I choose to be happy. I will take a day of happiness over a month of misery. I choose to be joyful. I choose to laugh, love and live for as long as God gives me.