Question: “I’m a very happy person, do not get me wrong, but I feel as though my soul is slowly emptying itself of all content, like a sand timer. I argue with my family a lot and constantly seem to say the wrong thing. This has not much to do with Buddhism but I thought you could give me some advice.”
If you’re a very happy person, then why are you arguing with your family? That’s not a sign of happiness is it? You are superficially happy, which is not real happiness. Superficial happiness comes from the nice things we have, our friends, family, job, etc. Real happiness is being happy with having everything and not having anything at all.
Superficial happiness comes and goes as the things and people in our lives come and go. So we meditate through our feelings and angers to find the source of everything and fix or eradicate the source of our unhappiness. That source is sometimes obvious and easy to find, other times it takes a lot of contemplation and self-discovery to find it. But when we do, we are able to be at a much higher level of happiness where the things that used to bother us don’t anymore.
True happiness is peace of mind, not being angry or worried while we’re in certain situations, then happy and relieved in others. Happiness is how we approach and react to situations. As long as you don’t let a situation bother you and just let it go knowing that it is just an impermanent feeling, then it becomes so much easier to get through difficult situations.
Smile and be well!