Forms of Happiness and Bullying

That kid getting bullied at the arena doesn't shock me. In europe it is way worse, I mean, you step into the wrong bar/club wearing the wrong jersey you could get beat the fuck up pretty quick. But there was something about a kid getting harassed like that and it bugged me quite a bit. And judging from the output of support the kid received afterwards, it pissed a lot of other people off as well.

John-Tavares-Comes-Through-for-11-Year-Old

It got me thinking, why did this whole thing go down?

Well for starters, I think i'm pissed off for a different reason than some. I mean there is the obvious bullying aspect that comes with full grown adults teasing a child. That boggles my mind. You really needed to rag on some kid to make yourself feel better? Pathetic

But also there is this less talked about issue of self-validation. And I find that self-validation permeates our lives in a major way.  A lot of happiness is latched on to these things that aren't "real". I feel happiness should be a feeling we have that is not based on societal trends or material goods. These things aren't "real". They are just objects..there is no emotional output from them. People tend to self-validate themselves by pointing to the material objects around them. I have this and this and that hanging on the wall i'm the happiest person alive. And who the fuck am I to define happiness anyways? But I try my hardest to keep things in perspective and keep those I love close. Because that is my source of happiness.

And I mean fuck I know i'm being such a priviliged person by saying we should cut back. But that really is a whole different story.  What I'm trying to say here is that we should not let our happiness rely on having STUFF, or a hockey team WINNING. We should be able to stand butt naked in a field with just ourselves and be happy.

I do make the case that there are ORGANIC forms of happiness. These organic forms of happiness seem to be stronger and more rooted to the individual. And then there are LESS ORGANIC forms of happiness that seem to revolve around material things..or societal illusions such as a sports team.

Sports teams are certainly illusions. And even I got caught up with the olympic hockey. And i'll admit i'd be dissapointed if they lost ( they didn't).. but even then, doubt i'd call out a little kid over the whole thing.

The way I see these non-organic happiness creators? I don't dismiss them really, I take part in them myself. However, these things can be lost and are not pernament.

Rather, I try to build my life around organic forms of happiness that are more strongly rooted. These forms of happiness are more connected to me as an indivudal and how I feel.

And as usual i'm not here to tell anyone how to feel. But if you find yourself drunk, pissed off, and cat calling a little kid over a sports game then..well maybe you should start seeking alternate forms of happiness.

-Dev