Chapter 22: The Process

Damon was upset. He did nothing wrong. And those girls were just mean to him for no real reason. But he learned his lesson. Love can’t be forced. Either it’s there or it isn’t. And if it isn’t… you have just deal with it.

Damon was dealing with it in isolation, playing video games. He only talked to his BFF, Devi.

“Don’t worry about them! They are just shallow bitc….I mean … woofums… and they are only interested in jerks with shiny cars. You can do better than that.”

Devi was a great help for him. Not only because of her supportive words, but because of her way of life. Watching Devi dealing with every day life helped Damon to understand the old cliche that happiness is not a destination but a journey; that aspirations are not about those goals but about loving the process of getting there, loving the baby steps that bring you closer to your dream. And Devi was a shining example of that. Being a lazy sim, she never worried about success and ambitions. She lived her life in a relaxed, laid-back manner, but she felt fulfilled all along.

“Dig dig dig dig dig dig dig is what I like to do….”

For Devi, every single rock and every single log was full of wonders and every collectable she found brought her joy. She loved collecting, every second of it. Until one day, without pushing too hard and without forcing it, she completed her first collection. Effortlessly. Naturally. Just like that.

Millie couldn’t take her eyes off of it.

And when Damon thought about it, his parents were living like that, too. Their goal was to have a big, successful family. They were not there (yet) but they loved the process of being parents – and soulmates – so they were happy.

E: “You remind me of pancakes.” A: “How so?”

E: “I love pancakes.”

#relationshipgoals

(No wonder Damon believes in romantic love when he grew up with this, huh?)

Then, there was Melia – her plants were far from perfect and her cooking skills were still average, but she didn’t care. She knew she could live her whole life without completing a single aspiration and still be happy. Because she found great joy in food and gardening and just doing these activities was rewarding enough.

Yum! Home-made food (belongs to Simstagram, right?)

Damon didn’t know how to love the process of finding a soulmate. His aspiration was the trickiest. Because unlike others, the outcome didn’t depend on how hard he tried. It was quite the opposite, in fact. The more he pushed it the less luck he’s got.

He tried to get some inspiration from his brother Castor, another aspiring Soulmate. But it was not really helping, since Castor’s found the one so quickly and easily that he didn’t even know how it happened. And he was the happiest man on the planet ever since.

Who wouldn’t be with a wife like this?

And with these cute mini-Castors running around? (Yes, Isis and Ross Rossini, first granchildren of Eira and Adrian, are already attending elementary school.)

 

So Damon was a little lost. He now understood that happiness was the journey. He saw his family members successfully applied this philosophy. He saw that it worked for them. But he didn’t see how exactly to use it in his case.

Until one day, someone unexpected helped him with that. It was his youngest sister Dory. And she did nothing. Well, nothing concious. She just jumped out of the bassinet. (She couldn’t help it – the life span is merciless.)

“Surprise, everyone! I’m blond!”

But there was something about the way she did it – maybe it was her mischievous smile, or her enthusiasm, or the way she embraced the fact she looked different – that gave him the answer. In the moment of growing up, Dory didn’t even know what her aspiration was – but she was happy nevertheless. The fact that she’s alive, complete and independent was all she needed to know. Maybe it was the childhood innocence but she just adored her life.

Seeing her there, so lively, so eager to grow and learn, he knew it was time for him to do the same. Because sometimes we got to live the life we love. And sometimes we have to love the life we live, even if it’s not perfect. Either alternative shouldn’t be problematic for Damon. He’s a cheerful sim – loving life is his secret talent.

He immediately discussed his plans and ideas with the best love expert he knew.

“…and than I figured out I should probably focused on my life and to work on myself. So what do you think?”

“Well, what can I say! Great decision! It’s well-known that if you’re not happy single…”

“…you won’t be happy in a relationship, either. Happiness comes from within, honey.”

Eira: “Aaah, these kids. They grow up so fast.”

Next day, Damon was ready to try his new strategy. He decided to improve his cooking skill at park’s grills. Eira didn’t have work that day, so she came along. She didn’t want him to set the park on fire, after all.

He tried to prepare a baked potato first. Damon was a bit nervous but it turned out great! He was so encouraged by his first culinary success that he made another meal, this time a serving of hamburgers. And they were delicious, too! Eira was speechless (or she just couldn’t speak because she was too busy eating.)

C: “Damon! This tastes like heaven.”

Castor happened to be in the park, too. The smell of burgers was irresistible, so he joined them for lunch. He was impressed to find out that the food was Damon’s doing and  he was glad to hear about his brother’s self-improving, life-loving plan. He thought it was quite a mature idea, especially coming from a teenage boy. He even suggested his own method: “You should try chess, Damon. It’s a great way of pursuing personal growth.”

Damon agreed and he wanted to start right then and there. So he walked towards the closest chess table.

And there she was.