St. Ignatius replied,"I would go on doing what I'm doing now."
I've always felt that this might be the secret to happiness. I can't tell you how many people I know who can't be happy in Abilene because they have to be in the mountains or by an ocean. They can only be really happy, really at peace, somewhere else. I think most of the world is that way. Happiness is never about where you are right now. Happiness is always somewhere else. So if it were your last day on earth you wouldn't stay put, you'd try to jet off to some exotic spot and drink a Corona. The good life is always there. Never here.
But what would it mean to say, truly, that if today was your last day you'd get up, just like you always get up, and simply go about your business? It would mean, I think, that you'd figured out a way--by the grace of God--to experience bliss wherever you are. You'd have solved the puzzle, passed the test, discovered the secret. There is no need for flight. Grace is right here, right now.
I think about this all the time and I actually spend a great deal of effort working on exactly this. I want to be able to say with St. Ignatius, "I would go on doing what I'm doing now." I think that's the secret to happiness.
