The Pursuit of Happiness

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

United States of America - Declaration of Independence

American's Founding Fathers believed in the Pursuit of Happiness. A wonderfully written book about their pursuit is "The Pursuit of Happiness" by Jeffrey Rosen. In it, he explains that most of the Founding Fathers believed that the pursuit of happiness was to be found in the pursuit of virtue.

Benjamin Franklin wrote that "Without virtue man can have no happiness in this world."

Washington, Jefferson, Adams and others al read Cicero, who wrote "The mere search for happiness, not merely its actual attainment, is prize beyond all human wealth or honor or physical pleasure."

Rosen writes, "If you had to sum it up in one sentence, the classical definition of the pursuit of happiness meant being a lifelong learner, with a commitment to practicing the daily habits of that lead to character improvement, self-mastery, flourishing, and growth."

This is what we need today. This is what needs to be written to our grandchildren. Happiness is not a destination at the end of the greed rainbow. It is a journey of self-discovery and self-discipline towards self-improvement.