Cross-posted from my BlogSpot: Serenity, guilt, and giving oneself grace

[catecumen]

For too long, when I feel happy, I have then felt guilty and condemned for it, on the premise that to be content in a world of suffering is to be cold and uncaring toward all those who are in pain. Today I choose to allow myself to be willing to enjoy a sense of peace without feeling that my own serenity makes me morally responsible for harm to others. Just as finishing my dinner neither helps nor hurts the starving elsewhere in the world, my happiness is not the cause of the suffering of others.