The Other Side of Sacrifice

"Never make a sacrifice that makes you feel miserable."

No one said that sacrifice equals pain, grief, or misery. We can give up on something that means the world to us and still be happy. 

We have to do what is right for us. We don't always have to die for those we love, those who need us or who have done something invaluable for us.

We have to live for them. 

And many times, living for the ones we love means doing what is right for us and standing up for what we want, putting up a lone fight for what we believe in. In the long run, it is always better to be alone maintaining silent dignity instead of doing something that constantly requires us to lose our peace of mind, happiness, and identity. And that in turn sometimes means jumping off the edge of a cliff with no idea of what lies beneath but still doing it, because standing still or going back are no longer an option.

Every human being is gifted happiness and the right to pursue happiness since birth. Thinking that a sacrifice will give joy to the people who mean something to us may not always be right. One day they will see through our grief and feel hurt, and THAT will make us feel worse because our seemingly gregarious act did not achieve its intended purpose. No one but we ourselves know what makes us truly happy, what sacrifices we ought to make, and what sacrifice we are capable of handling. The journey of the soul through human life is about keeping a balance, maintaining equilibrium between becoming a matyr and being what the world calls selfish.

When you decide to give up something in life for what you think is a higher cause, think again: Who will this benefit? Will this sacrifice bring happiness to the people or situation I am giving myself up for? Will it make the world and the people in it a better place to live in the long run? Most importantly, are we making our sacrifice with a smiling face and a clear conscience? Or do we think we will end up living with a heavy heart?

A true sacrifice is one that makes US happy. A parent's sacrifice is said to be the ultimate sacrifice because what they give up for their child makes them happy. Otherwise it is just bad karmic debt and we will keep wondering where we went wrong. So, if you do something, do it happily. Otherwise just don't do it.