Happiness Effort (New Poem by Polly Castor)

Happiness Effort (New Poem by Polly Castor)

Happiness Effort (New Poem by Polly Castor)

Happiness Effort

Is happiness found
through concentrated effort
and lazar sharp endeavor?

Like waves
of the ocean tide,
it will perpetually
keep coming,
quite naturally,
as steady and impending
as your next breath.
As each breath exhales,
and each tide recedes,
the next one insistently
appears, altogether afresh
on hallowed repeat.

The Source of happiness
is already present.
It does not require finding.
Rest and let it happen,
washing over and through you.
Slurp it in. Receptivity to it
matters more than
exertion or enticement.

Careful: do not attempt
to manipulate providence.
Destiny will have none of that.
Interference clogs the system.
Staunchly avoid willpower,
the mischief-maker that
obliterates or obscures
your inherent good.

Happiness, like home,
is a mobile idea,
without location,
which can always accompany us,
when we dwell there, unresisting.

Why search the horizon
for what is right here?
Why look so far off,
when it means
you won’t notice
what is at your feet?

You pursue that rainbow,
but never get there.
That dog chases its tail
and never grabs it.

Why exhaust yourself
by trying in vain,
when you can just relax
and accept what is
perpetually available
by design?

That tight fist of yours
needs to merely
unclasp and open
to be ready
to attain.
Stop hunting.
Stop contriving.
Stop manufacturing.
Unfasten instead,
unfurling and unfolding
in this moment’s sunlight.
Invite the light in.
Feel it filling
your consciousness.

Don’t chase a butterfly
that is already quietly
resting before you.
Notice the languorous way,
it unhurriedly flaps its wings,
completely at peace and content.

There is no need to force joy.
Each of us is created
with it already fully installed.

by Polly Castor
7/21/2021

I work to amplify good wherever I find it. I love color, texture, beauty, great ideas, nature, metaphor, deliciousness, genuine spirituality, and exploring new territory. I encourage authenticity, nurture creativity, champion sustainability, promote peace, and hope to foster a new renaissance where we all are free to be our most fulfilled, multifaceted, and terrific selves. Read more here.

2 Comments

  1. Sue Krevitt 3 years ago

    Oh HOW I do love and mainly accept the truths in your poem today, Polly!
    I say mainly because IF I fully totally absolutely accept them, deep down,
    100%, I would pay no attention to the aggression of the limited senses that
    tell me otherwise! But as you wrote, we stand at the point of opportunity every second (or something like this…or perhaps another wise woman wrote it)…and this brings me peace, and hope! Life is ever fresh, ever new, every moment, each moment of our living! Whew!

  2. Mary Beth 3 years ago

    Hmm, Polly, I struggle between ambition for changing my world and acceptance of the world around me. Happiness, I’ve told myself at times, is overrated, especially as a goal. Perhaps I should alter the statement, to: the -search -for happiness is overrated. I do agree that often what we seek is… right here.

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