| For the most part, we can be happy and good. But even then, we have sometimes to make choices involving sacrifice. And beyond that, sometimes people are not in a position to be happy and good, at least at that juncture in their lives. Of course, if they have a conscience, they are not likely to be happy anyway. For example, suppose that you must decide whether to betray anti- Nazi partisans, or face torture and death. There is no "solution". It is not a problem that one solves, it is a situation that one faces, and one's choice is defining. On a more modest level, suppose I am looking forward to spending some quality time with my wife, but suddenly my son has a homework emergency, needing help understanding some material. Of course I am going to help him with his school work, but that does not mean I will not be very disappointed that it arose at such a bad time. Again, it is not a problem to be solved, it is a situation which, in the course of things, arises........... |
