We have discussed the idea that in order to be truly happy a person has to live by their values. Happiness is not found in the pursuit of pleasure. Pleasure is only pleasure. An immediate gratification, but not happiness. In our pursuit to live a life that is guided by values we discover that it is not necessary to hide who we are or what we do. We do not have to hide anything because we are proud of what we do and who we are. We are free.
Those who pursue pleasure, if they have some sense of humility, are forced to hide parts of themselves and their lives. For example, someone who pursues the pleasure of the effects of alcohol consumption may hide how much he or she drinks when at a doctor’s appointment or when interviewing for a job. Or, someone may pursue the pleasure of pornography and has to keep their cellphone locked so others will not see pictures, or videos, they downloaded. Or, perhaps someone has a voyeur pleasure that they pursue and hide nude photos of themselves on their phones that they text out to others, but don’t want their loved ones to know about.
This idea came to me a few days ago about living your life according to values and when you live by values there is no need to hide anything about yourself. You can live your life and never have to lock your cellphone for fear of someone picking it up and finding out your secrets because you have nothing to hide, or secrets to keep.
Pick your values and live by them. Live a life where you can leave your cellphone unlocked because you have nothing to hide. No secrets to keep, no shame to hide, and a browser history anyone can see. Life is too short to have to keep track of half-truths and lies. Be free by living in accordance with your virtues and never lock your cellphone again.
