Staying Positive in Tough Times

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
--Jim Elliot

There are a lot of saying about having a positive attitude toward life, but sometimes having those positive attitudes can be quite the challenge. If our lives are indicative to how we see life and the people that encircle our little vortex therein, then how should our attitudes come into play?

Often times I can have a wide range of emotional moments in just one instance. I can have a bleak and undeserving thinking outlook on life while at the same time outwardly displaying a jovial existence. Why is this? Why must we pretend to be what everyone expects us to be?

There is no one definitive answer to this question, for there are many. My answer is because that's all I've ever known. Can I break this habitual habit. Maybe. Then again maybe not.