Mr. Happiness (and the invisible weight of smiling).

“Oh! Look who's here! Mr. Happiness! Hello dear, are you okay? But why am I asking? Your colleagues come in and are always crying and complaining. You're always calm and smiling! Lucky you, life is always going well for you. What problems could you possibly have?”

But what do you know? What do you know about the scars imprinted on my skin, and under my skin, that I would rather not have or remember?

What do you know? you of the pain that I had to live to the fullest, without discounts, understanding it and accepting it?

What do you know? of the monsters I had to deal with to keep my soul from being devoured?

What do you know? of the immense work I did on myself to overcome the mental limitations that held me back, to live up to and accept myself when not even those who should have believed in me did?

What do you know? that facing life with a smile, focusing on its beauty, is a specific choice of mine, desired, sought, trained and which requires a continuous and immeasurable use of strength?

What do you know? of the fact that I only open my heart to a select few people who can be counted on the fingers of one hand, truly special people who can see my soul, who aren't afraid to delve into the depths... why am I fed up and tired of superficiality and idle words?

What do you know? of my journey, of my curious quest that never ends and I hope never ends?

What do you know? that what you see as an insurmountable mountain I have not already climbed and descended countless times?

Be quiet, please…

“Everything's fine, yes, thank you! MERRY CHRISTMAS! 😃”