I didn’t intend to write a follow up to Be Happy but I received an email from a lady who is in a really bad relationship. She said she admired me for having all my stuff together and wanted me to tell her how to apply the lesson from Be Happy to her relationship. First off, I let her know I didn't always have my stuff together. When it comes to bad relationships, I’ve been there, done that and got the emotional scars to prove it. My first relationship lasted 7 gut wrenching years and nearly ended up as an inglorious tribute to Shakespearean tragedy. Instead of telling her what to do about her relationship, which I think is a bad idea by the way; I told her what a man who loves you doesn’t do. If a man truly loves you:- - He will not sleep with other women and tell you it was just sex and they mean nothing to him.
- He will not lie to you. By the way, editing the facts, omitting certain information is also classified as lying.
- He will not emotionally abuse you by putting you down to make himself feel better.
- He will not lay a finger on you. If he’s mad, he knows the way out of the door to go and cool off somewhere. He has no right to touch you and no matter what you’ve done, nothing justifies it, ever.
- He will support you through rain, sunshine, fire and brimstone, and he will stand by his promise to love and honour you.
If someone you’re with is practising either or all of 1 - 4 above and not practising 5, you probably need to step back and ask yourself if you want to be happy. If the answer is yes, you know what to do. Have the courage to seek out happiness because you deserve it and never stop until you find it. Life is too short.
