Happiness is a state of serene harmony with oneself. It lets you transcend the boundary between a crippled soul to a spirited one. It lets you decide wisely and the contentment allows you to pick the right way. Picking the right way helps you succeed in life and in return, success ushers in more happiness.
Mark was not happy. Actually, he was far from happy. He felt pretty exhausted and confused. Earlier in the afternoon, when he had darted to the nearest restaurant to grab a quick lunch, a man in his early twenties had approached him for a selfie. This wasn’t unusual. After all, Mark was an up and coming actor who had starred in four highly profitable movies. His acting had earned him praise and appreciation for the unconventional roles he played: a depressed megastar, a broken lawyer, an emotional gangster, or a delusional mental patient. His performance got better and better while his fortunes soared higher and higher. He had soon become the object of jealousy of his co-actors and a role model movie star for his young fans. He was currently busy shooting for his next movie which would be the directorial debut of his friend John. He had just finished an hour-long shoot of a courtroom scene, which had been extraordinarily taxing even for the talented young actor, and so, he wanted a moment of peace for himself. Hence, the visit to the restaurant with a collared-up shirt, baseball cap, and aviator sunglasses.
His young fan, though, had been quick to see through his disguise and had come quietly to his table.
‘Excuse me, Mark. Can I get a selfie?’, he asked meekly.
Mark was extremely exhausted and felt like punching the young man in the face. But Mark was not foolish. Not yet. He silently obliged and thefan took the photo. Thankfully, the fan did not bother him more and left him quickly after thanking him.
The evening was uneventful and the shooting packed up at around seven. Mark returned home in the next half an hour. The moment he approached the front door, he knew something wasn’t right. There were several fresh scratches near the keyhole. Somebody had tried to break in. Mark gingerly fished out the keys and unlocked the door making as little noise as possible. He slowly pushed open the door and stepped in, his eyes scanning every inch of his living room for intruders. There were none. He silently stepped into his bedroom and gasped. The curtains were gently moving with the light breeze outside. Mark was certain he had closed all the windows in the house before leaving for the shoot. He was also certain, now, that there was an intruder or a thief who had been in his house not long ago.
Mark looked around and was startled at what he saw on his reading table. A small gift wrapped in fancy wrapping paper was sitting there waiting for him to unravel its contents. The wrapping paper, with its flowery pattern, seemed very familiar to Mark. But, he couldn’t quite place where he had seen them.
Inching forward, he looked once at the open window and then at the little gift. He gulped and started unwrapping the gift like a small child. After a few moments, a faded brown box sat on the table challenging Mark to open it. Mark took a deep breath. The lid seemed old and used. He lifted the lid slowly.
There was a small piece of paper lying in it. Confused, Mark picked it up and noticed that somebody had scribbled something on it. The handwriting seemed very familiar.
Thepaper said:
Dear Mark,
Can I get a selfie?
Signed,
Mark
It was his own handwriting.
Mark was not happy. Actually, he was far from happy. He felt pretty exhausted and confused. Earlier in the afternoon, when he had darted to the nearest restaurant to grab a quick lunch, a man in his early twenties had approached him for a selfie. This wasn’t unusual. After all, Mark was an up and coming actor who had starred in four highly profitable movies. His acting had earned him praise and appreciation for the unconventional roles he played: a depressed megastar, a broken lawyer, an emotional gangster, or a delusional mental patient. His performance got better and better while his fortunes soared higher and higher. He had soon become the object of jealousy of his co-actors and a role model movie star for his young fans. He was currently busy shooting for his next movie which would be the directorial debut of his friend John. He had just finished an hour-long shoot of a courtroom scene, which had been extraordinarily taxing even for the talented young actor, and so, he wanted a moment of peace for himself. Hence, the visit to the restaurant with a collared-up shirt, baseball cap, and aviator sunglasses.
His young fan, though, had been quick to see through his disguise and had come quietly to his table.
‘Excuse me, Mark. Can I get a selfie?’, he asked meekly.
Mark was extremely exhausted and felt like punching the young man in the face. But Mark was not foolish. Not yet. He silently obliged and thefan took the photo. Thankfully, the fan did not bother him more and left him quickly after thanking him.
The evening was uneventful and the shooting packed up at around seven. Mark returned home in the next half an hour. The moment he approached the front door, he knew something wasn’t right. There were several fresh scratches near the keyhole. Somebody had tried to break in. Mark gingerly fished out the keys and unlocked the door making as little noise as possible. He slowly pushed open the door and stepped in, his eyes scanning every inch of his living room for intruders. There were none. He silently stepped into his bedroom and gasped. The curtains were gently moving with the light breeze outside. Mark was certain he had closed all the windows in the house before leaving for the shoot. He was also certain, now, that there was an intruder or a thief who had been in his house not long ago.
Mark looked around and was startled at what he saw on his reading table. A small gift wrapped in fancy wrapping paper was sitting there waiting for him to unravel its contents. The wrapping paper, with its flowery pattern, seemed very familiar to Mark. But, he couldn’t quite place where he had seen them.
Inching forward, he looked once at the open window and then at the little gift. He gulped and started unwrapping the gift like a small child. After a few moments, a faded brown box sat on the table challenging Mark to open it. Mark took a deep breath. The lid seemed old and used. He lifted the lid slowly.
There was a small piece of paper lying in it. Confused, Mark picked it up and noticed that somebody had scribbled something on it. The handwriting seemed very familiar.
Thepaper said:
Dear Mark,
Can I get a selfie?
Signed,
Mark
It was his own handwriting.
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