Appreciating Absence—A Key to Happiness 快乐的钥匙一一庆幸坏事没有到来

景一

Its easy to spot1 when were lacking something. When things arent going well， we tend to zoom2 in on all the good things that we want and dont have， like fortune or fame， rather than all the things we dont want， and dont have.

When was the last time you stopped to appreciate that youre not in pain？ Or that youre not terminally3 ill？ Or that you dont live in a war-torn country？ Or that youre not living on the streets？ Or starving to death？ Or any one of the million types of suffering that life can throw at us.

How often do we take time to notice when were not lacking something？

We crave4 for good things to happen to us. Thats natural. But much of the time， no news is actually good news. A life without much drama is actually a pretty good life.

Its one of the secrets to happiness—to appreciate the absence of bad things as much as the presence of good things.

We cant always get what we want， and many of us never will. But instead of concentrating on those few things， why not feel grateful for the almost infinite5 amount of things we dont want in our lives， and are still lucky enough not to have， at least for now.

If youre reading this， chances are youre living in a family that could afford the magazine， which means that you are lucky enough to be living with a roof over your head， enough food to eat， and access to medical care， hopefully. Even without looking too hard， Im sure there are still many things to be grateful for.

Things could change in the future. Who knows what will happen. But for now， lets enjoy the present moment， when were lucky enough to have our health， or youth， or people who love us， or all three and more.

The ability to see， and appreciate even just a few of the good things we have in life is key to being happy. The ability to still do that when life has dealt a mediocre6 hand， thats a proof to our character.

我們很容易注意到缺少什么东西。当事情不顺利的时候，我们倾向聚焦于所有我们想要但却没有的东西，比如说财富或名声，而不是所有我们不想要而且也没有的东西。

你最近一次停下来庆幸自己没有遭受痛苦是什么时候的事情？或者最近一次庆幸自己没有得绝症，没有生活在一个饱受战争蹂躏的国家，没有流浪街头或者饿死，又或者没有遭受生活可能带来的百万种痛苦中的任何一种是什么时候的事情？

我们要多久才会注意到我们并不缺少某些东西？

我们渴望美好的事情发生在我们身上，这很自然。但大部分时间里，没事实际上就是好事。没有太多戏剧性的生活实际上才是美好的生活。

这是幸福的秘诀之一——庆幸坏事的缺席，正如感激好事的存在一样。

我们不可能总是得到我们想要的，有许多人从来就得不到。与其关注那些少有的事情，为什么不去庆幸我们足够幸运，至少目前在生活中没有遭遇到那些数不尽的不想遇到的事情呢？

如果你正在读这篇文章，你可能生活在一个买得起这本杂志的家庭，这意味着你有幸拥有住所、足够的食物和医疗保健。即使不刻意寻找，我相信你仍然能找到许多值得庆幸的事情。

未来情况可能会发生变化。谁知道会发生什么事呢？但现在，让我们享受当下。我们幸运地拥有健康、青春，或爱我们的人，或者同时拥有这三种或更多。

能发现并为生活中哪怕仅仅只有少数几件美好事物感到庆幸的能力是快乐的关键。当生活平庸时，仍能做到这件事，这就是我们品格的证明。

Notes：

1. spot vt. 认出

2. zoom vi. 急速上升；猛增；（摄影机镜头）推近或拉远

3. terminally adv. 最后；处于末期症状上；致命地

4. crave vi. 渴望；恳求

5. infinite adj. 无限的，无穷的

6. mediocre adj. 普通的；平凡的