MIA: HAPPINESS

MARIVIC D. GOMEZ

The greatest things in life can’t be found in the world, and this seems to be true. Humans are not born to be contented, they want to achieve things one after another, they want everything on their plates, they yearn for things that others have, they can even have the best of both worlds, but why do they always feel like something is missing like there is a lost puzzle in their lives and it will never be complete again.

The community is mum about mental illness, when this illness has been screaming its lungs out to be heard. Cases of depression that end up in suicide are growing rapidly in numbers and just recently a renowned designer “Kate Spade” took her own life for the same reason - DEPRESSION. This is the reality now, beyond the beautiful image of a normal and successful person lie sadness and emptiness. Happiness is missing in action, and no one is there to take an action. With the world’s complexity today, everyone is eager to be successful or at least try to survive this fierce cycle of life. They are all running towards the peak of success like it is a marathon, and their only focus is to reach the top of the mountain. But at the end of the race, when the peak of success is achieved, they look back and feels like they lost something while running, and realizing it was happiness. People live in the concept of compromise and practicality. It is a dilemma of choosing between what would make you happy and what would make your life better, and more often than not the latter is chosen. This is the world today, a world where comfort is valued more than happiness, a world that shows shines and shimmers but hides a dark secret on the inside.

Mental illness is not a small matter to be brushed off the shoulder. Humans must all learn from Jessi J’s song, Price Tag that says “Money can’t buy us happiness.” It is a move that should start within everyone’s heart. Then maybe one day the happiness that was once MISSING IN ACTION can finally find its way back home.

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The author is Teacher III at San Francisco Elementary School, Mabalacat City, Pampanga