The Quest

Throughout life we are led to believe,

That happiness is the ultimate prize.

That all the work, accomplishments and even love,

Are for the achievement of having happy.

But happy comes in spurts, small segments of life,

Which make you smile inside and out.

Moments that cause an immediate desire,

To skip and run doing cartwheels across the lawn.

And in between those precious moments,

Are hours of sweat and tears and strife.

But we muck on through, one foot in front of the other,

Putting shoulders to the wheel of life.

And in the end, because of the promise of happy,

We may think we have missed the boat.

Not realizing that the true quest was for this:

Contentment in a life well spent as it was lived.