Last Thursday was the prettiest day so far this spring. If you can’t recall, the sky was the brightest blue, the sun was warm and it was just windy enough to remind you to notice how fresh and pleasant the air was.

It’s interesting how something as seemingly insignificant as the weather can make an ordinary day seem wonderful. Recently, in an effort to extend that natural happiness to the less beautiful days, I tried to pin down reasons as to why my days are so much better when the sun is warm and I realized that they actually aren’t better at all.

I lead the same monotonous, homework-filled and unadventurous life on beautiful days that I lead on rainy, miserable days when I can barely drag myself out of bed. However, it took this realization of the obvious correlation between gorgeous days and my own happiness for me to see that really, the weather doesn’t matter at all.

What really matters is one’s attitude.

We’ve all heard the phrase “life’s a bitch and then you die.” I feel very sorry for anyone who really believes that because they are dooming themselves to be unhappy. If you don’t believe that the world is designed to allow people to make their own happiness then you’re right, you will never find yours.

I really believe that life is what you make it, and it seems like a lot of people have a lot of lame excuses to explain their unhappiness. However, I definitely don’t want to discount the fact that there are many circumstances which can hugely devastate one’s life and ability to hope. But even people in the worst imaginable circumstances, with the right attitude, can find small ways to be happy and to have hope.

You know those kids you see on the Discovery Channel with no legs who run marathons (or something of that sort, I’m sure you get the picture)? Have you noticed how happy they are 99 percent of the time? It’s almost as though their situation doesn’t affect their happiness, as though happiness isn’t as externally dictated as one might believe. Even if circumstances make it difficult, a strong will can find some happiness in any life.

It can be so easy to focus on what’s wrong in one’s life and in the world at large, and to let those things snowball into a feeling of complete despair. It’s easy to give up and blame life for dealing you a bad hand, to just let the world dictate your attitude and your happiness.

But it’s better, in my mind at least, to fight. It’s better to do everything you can to focus on the things in life you can enjoy and to see the good and the beautiful in the world. What do you really have to lose?

Maybe it is impossible to be completely happy, but it doesn’t hurt to try and it’s the only way to find out.

Some people seem so very committed to their cynicism, like they expect their bad attitudes and hopelessness to be impressive and respectable. I can’t understand why it’s so terrible to believe that there is something to look forward to, that there are things to enjoy each day. How can it be wrong to think that there’s a chance to make some little happiness and to use it to cultivate a good attitude and a good life?

It makes me sad to think that there are people who have resigned themselves to living without hope. They would probably consider me naive and ignorant of the true nature of the world, but I’d rather be a fool with the hope that there is some sliver of happiness to be found in this life, than a very worldly and mature person without. I hope you will too.

Let Kate know what improves your attitude at [email protected].