Sutured Dreams

In the past year, I've received all sorts of advice from friends and well-wishers on how to improve my mood. How to achieve happiness.  "Hit the gym." "Buy a guitar." "Watch a movie." "Get invested in work." "Get in a new relationship." "See a therapist." And the all-time classic of them all - " Just be happy ." What most of these well-meaning individuals don't understand is that I've already tried most of these mood-improving tricks over the years and whatever good they do is really only temporary at best. Finding happiness in life is not easy.  But recently, I've found myself feeling better. Less tired. Less angry. More in control of myself.  So, what happened? Victim of the Past Ever since I was a little kid, I've always felt like I was a couple of years older than my actual age.   My mother had decided to change career paths when I was in 2nd or 3rd standard and at that point my father was in