December 30: What I Have Learned

I have learned a great deal about Holden Caulfield this year.  Holden is funny and smart.  He's a good writer, and so is his brother.  Holden has good taste in books, but he has lousy taste in friends.  Holden's severely depressed and has been for quite some time.  And Holden loves his little sister, Phoebe.  He smokes too much, eats too little, and thinks anybody over the age of ten or eleven is a phonie.

The most significant thing I will take away from my Catcher year is that it's not a great book to read if you're struggling in any way.  There's very little that's uplifting in Salinger's novel.  The only time Holden is truly happy comes at the end of the narrative, right before we find out that he's in a hospital, recuperating from a mental breakdown.  Holden's sitting in the rain, watching his little sister ride the merry-go-round in Central Park.  And he's really happy.

It's a simple moment.  Nothing really significant has happened.  Holden hasn't figured out the meaning of life.  He's figured out very little, actually.  Yet, he has finally reached a state of bliss.

Happiness isn't something to hunt down and capture.  Happiness doesn't depend on the school you attend, the job you have, or the people you call friends.  Happiness is a choice.  Whether you're sitting on a beach in Hawaii or on a bench in Central Park during a rainstorm, you can be happy.

Saint Marty chooses to be happy this last day of 2013.

It takes a lot of practice