We just all want to be happy, don't we? There's something so nice about the idea of never having to remove that smile from your face. Successful people are happy, so we should copy them, right? On the other hand, sad and lonely people are major losers which we should do our best to avoid. It's that simple, isn't it? Nope. Everything about these two mental states are far more complicated than how we view them. Too much happiness, after all, is bad, just as too much sadness is. But what we don't often realize is that these are healthy in the right doses. Well, happiness is important, but so is loneliness or solitude. And these two things have been getting a lot of bad reputation lately that it's best to take a closer look at what exactly can make us happy and lonely-in a good way. Happiness is about socialization. It's about exploring the world, engaging in different experiences, and making sure to meet new people and new places. It's that really good feeling when you go to a bar, or when you simply get down to paint or to write. It can be then described that happiness is about being one with the world. To share new things and to experience them. To take part in novelty. To try and reach out to the rest of humanity. On the other hand, loneliness is about one's self. It's about being aware of your thoughts and feelings, sorting them out independent of the world and all other external stimuli. Loneliness is introspection and quietness, the intoxicating beauty of solitude that we crave from time to time. Maybe it's that blissful silence in the middle of the night, or the period just after you wake but it's definitely a feeling you can't mistake. These two balance each other out so that you won't have too much of one thing and receive the negative consequences.