Going to school on a Monday is like listening to a song too much—eventually you know all the words. If there was a song for Mondays at Wayne Valley it would go something like this, “Life sucks. I’m so tired and I want to go home. I want starbucks and my comfy bed (did I mention life sucks?).”

Life isn’t actually that bad at all. After contemplating everything for about 2 minutes and 30 seconds (the average attention span of a teenager) a list can be made of little occurrences that subconsciously make us happy. Amongst them all, listening to a song constantly because we like the way it makes us feel is definitely at the top of the list. Music in itself is a stimulator for our thoughts. Sitting on the beach wearing a sweatshirt because it’s windy enough for one is up there as well. It’s hard to find air that smells that fresh, you know? And here’s a notably popular one: that moment the waitress/waiter becomes visible, approaching on the horizon with highly anticipated food—not all angels have wings. We hear this all the time: “Pay attention to the small stuff.” Then there are even smaller things that we don’t expect to make us happy at all. Serendipity: the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. For instance, that time Suzy accidently fell into a pool and Johnny saved her because she couldn’t swim is now the reason they’re married. It’s safe to say that these “happy accidents” may not always be recognized as “happy” at first thought, yet looking at the big picture can help identify them as cheerful occurrences.

1.) Unexpected circumstances
2.) Insightful “aha” moment
3.) Valuable Outcome

—All signs that you have had a serendipitous moment. If only our entire lives could be filled with these experiences… but would that really be enjoyable? If life was an entire enumeration of only happy events would our lives become redundant?  And the question that circles the main thought of happiness begins to ring in our heads: Does it take a bad moment to recognize a good one?

The thought that sadness is crucial in order to recognize happiness is a myth. For instance, I’d say most babies have never gotten their heartbroken yet there is no maximum on the amount of love they can consume. This misconceptualized theory derives from the fact that sadness makes us appreciate happiness at a greater level, not that one is necessary in order for the other to occur. Do we need to spend a month in Nigeria to know what cold weather feels like? No, I don’t think we do. However, going to the Jersey Shore after spending a month in Antarctica would definitely intensify our appreciation of the beach (a commonly visited place). The hot sand finding its way through our toes as we sit on a towel under the sun would make for a great reminder that warmth feels good.

So, don’t only let these happy moments come to you, come to them as well. As Dr.Phil would say, “If you want more, you have to require more from yourself.” Evidently, some things fall into place unexpectedly and when they do we should appreciate them. Maybe if we focused more on the tiny things that make us happy life wouldn’t suck at all.