"Why Shouldn't You Be Happy?"

Sunday night when I went to bed I was really upset and irritated. I wonder why I let myself fall in to those traps time and time again that put me in a bad mood and affect my self esteem. So Monday morning I pulled out my I Pad and started reading a book Spencer had suggested to me. The chapter was titled, "The Path of Unconditional Happiness." The author talks about how the highest spiritual path is life itself. He then says, "Do you want to be happy, or do you not want to be happy?" I have struggled with this question for most of my life. I have seen others that just seem to be happy all the time no matter what their circumstances are. "The purpose of your life is to enjoy and learn from you experiences. You were not put on this Earth to suffer. The fact remains that you were born and you are going to die. During the time in between, you get to choose whether or not you want to enjoy the experience." It sounds so simple but how do you live that way? How do you not let things upset you that really push your buttons? I know lots of times I get stuck into the past thinking about all those things that have affected me. I think I have dealt with them and all of a sudden they are back in my brain making me upset.  In the book he says, "Think of how much energy is wasted resisting what has already happened. Since the event has already passed, you are actually struggling with yourself, not with the event. In addition, contemplate how much energy is wasted resisting what might happen. Since most of the things you think might happen never do, you are just throwing your energy away." Maybe that's why I'm always so tired, using up all my energy on things I can't control. I loved this paragraph when he says, "In the end, enjoying life's experiences is the only rational thing to do. You're sitting on a planet spinning around in the middle of absolutely nowhere. Go ahead, take a look at reality. You're floating in empty space in a universe that goes on forever. If you have to be here, at least be happy and enjoy the experience. You're going to die anyway. Things are going to happen anyway. Why shouldn't you be happy? You gain nothing by being bothered by life's events. It doesn't change the world; you just suffer. There's always going to be something that can bother you, if you let it." It sounds so simple, but for me so hard.