Putting things in perspective

Some say that happiness is over-rated. Others believe that the end goal of life is not happiness. I guess I am not one of them. I firmly believe that one's life must be in pursuit of happiness. However, I should clarify that happiness does not equate to pleasure, as I had once believed when I was younger.

I had a conversation with a friend that put things in perspective for me. At the end of the day, you have to make choices that allow you to view yourself in a satisfied manner, to be at peace with both yourself and the world. How do you tell if you've reached that point? If you can truly be happy for others. If you are feeling shitty about yourself, feeling like a total loser, you won't and you can't feel good about other people, you won't be able to revel in their good fortune (it's just human nature perhaps?)

When I was younger, I was not sure about what I wanted. Now, as I have gotten older, my vision of what I want has solidified, crystallized by my environment, my self-reflections and those reflected from the people around me. I want to climb the peak known as achievement, to meet and succeed challenges in my path, to make the hard choices when an easier one tempts me, to persevere despite being the sole, lonely last runner in the marathon.

So all this is just a more convoluted way of saying, Emily will redouble her efforts to study! There, it's in print and my word is now bound in the written form. Hold me to my word, guys. =)