“Keep this thought at the ready at daybreak, and through the day and night – there is only one path to happiness, and that is in giving up all outside of your sphere of choice, regarding nothing else as your possession, surrendering all else to God and Fortune.”
Epictetus, Discourses.

When you really crave something that is out of your reach, you’re disappointed when you cannot have it. When you hope to avoid the things that fill you with dread, you feel scared and sad when misfortune befalls you. What do you wish for in life? Health, wealth and happiness? Only one of these is in your control – what you choose ‘being happy’ to mean.