The emotional roller coaster.

Boice, a.k.a. Mr Miyagi, instructs us to moderate our emotions. He doesn't spend too much time warning us of depression, but instead warns against hypomania.

It honestly reminds me of poets. For the most depressing set of biographies, read about poets, especially around the modern time. Two modern poets stuck their heads in gas ovens. It's hard to tell if their art drove them all crazy, or if being crazy made them produce art.

It's seven years until I complete my PhD. That's a long time to hold onto my sanity, especially as a writer.

A couple of lessons I've learned recently that have been spoken to me by people wiser than myself, and seem related to this:

1. Joy and happiness are not the same thing - happiness is temporary and fleeting, while joy is a more permanent state to be achieved.

2. I have a friend who has a tradition taken from his father. He eats grapefruit, even though he doesn't necessarily like grapefruit. This is a physical iteration of the adage that without the bitter, the sweet isn't as sweet.

Now, I don't think it's as easy as Boice says it is - and he certainly isn't an Emotional Psychologist. But I think he is correct that we should pursue a general contentment, rather than constant elation.