Unhappy? Maybe Your Expectations are Just Too Damn High
June 6, 2008
“He who dies not in his twenty-third year, drowns not in his twenty-fourth, and is not slain in his twenty-fifth, may boast of good days.” – Dutch Proverb
I found this proverb in a book published in 1852. So forget Maslow’s hierachy of needs and all of that namby-pamby new age stuff about self actualization and personal growth. Just not dying a tragic death was all it took to be happy in the good old days, when life was less complicated.
Entry Filed under: happiness. Tags: happiness, proverbs, unhappiness.
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Eric Olsen | June 6, 2008 at 11:22 pm
The quote is more of being grateful and thankful for what you’ve got (still being alive and having a chance of being happy).
Its funny that people complain about getting older because they are getting closer to their inevitable death, but are not as thankful for the time they’ve already had. Why compain at 60 or 70 when you’ve already had 60 or 70 years to live? That is a long time and many opportunities to be happy and enjoy life.
People are lucky to be 40 or 80; they shouldn’t be discouraged or unhappy about it.
Eric