A monk is chased by a tiger to a cliffs edge. The monk leaps and grasps a vine growing over the edge. Below is a long drop to certain death, above a snarling tiger. As the monk swings in midair a mouse gnaws on the vine. Growing out of the cliff in front of him the monk sees a wild strawberry which he picks and eats. He says, "this strawberry is delicious".
I laughed out loud. Partly because it's funny, and partly because it's perfect. A perfect illustration of the beauty of being in the present.
As Jon Kabat Zinn says (I'm paraphrasing), embrace the full catastrophe.
I was at the Fallbrook library bookshop. They had a whole row of Buddhist books for sale cheap. I asked, hey why so many Buddhism books? Clerk said, they all came donated from one person. Who seemed very calm when he brought them in.
So I bought a bunch.
Zen is the way to find happiness. happiness from within.