Catching Happiness

You're delusional to think happiness is real;

Well, it is but not in my world

Happiness is merely an illusion of judgment

It crowds your mind and slowly devours you until you're no more

What's the longest time someone can be happy?

Approximately five minutes, longer if they tired

It's no wonder the Guinness book of records has no entry for happiness

Happiness is a thought, not a person

If happiness were real, would the world deprive homeless people of shelter?

Would there be war amongst us?

This is why we should be vigilant about what we think;

You can be happy, but in this world, happiness doesn't exist

I've strived to teach myself to be happy 

I've failed and I've been wounded by it, so I gave up

The rich aren't truly happy, it's just an act

Behind the curtains, they shed tears that would fill the Red Sea

The poor and average are somewhat different

Even Buddha himself couldn't find the key to happiness

Instead, he found enlightenment, which I perceive to be much better

I plead that you don't go searching for the key to happiness;

It's a maze, filled with pain and grief, distort and regret

Once you go deep enough, you forget who you truly are

If happiness were genuine, don't you think the world would be equal?

No more sorrow nor burials but joy and celebrations every day

You can't naturally be happy, it's like pursuing the wind;

You can't see it, but you can feel it

This is why we call it Catching Happiness.

We're trying to grasp what's impossible.

I wrote this poem on the 15th of February '13. Currently, in English, we had been studying about Phillip Larkin and his apparent misanthrope. And I was very inspired by his work so I gave it a go. Catching Happiness is in the style of Phillip Larkin.