Few things in life are certain. Those few things are:

1.) The sky is blue.

2.) The grass is green.

3.) Meryl Streep is all sorts of genius.

A quote began floating around Facebook this week that, as it turns out, was incorrectly attributed to the aforementioned genius, Ms. Streep. While the originator of the quote is author Jose Micard Teixeira, rumor has it that these are words Meryl lives by.  Luckily, this means she gets to keep her genius status.

I no longer have patience for certain things, not because I’ve become arrogant, but simply because I reached a point in my life where I do not want to waste more time with what displeases me or hurts me. I have no patience for cynicism, excessive criticism and demands of any nature. I lost the will to please those who do not like me, to love those who do not love me and to smile at those who do not want to smile at me. I no longer spend a single minute on those who lie or want to manipulate. I decided not to coexist anymore with pretense, hypocrisy, dishonesty and cheap praise. I do not tolerate selective erudition nor academic arrogance. I do not adjust either to popular gossiping. I hate conflict and comparisons. I believe in a world of opposites and that’s why I avoid people with rigid and inflexible personalities. In friendship I dislike the lack of loyalty and betrayal. I do not get along with those who do not know how to give a compliment or a word of encouragement. Exaggerations bore me and I have difficulty accepting those who do not like animals. And on top of everything I have no patience for anyone who does not deserve my patience.

I dare anyone to tell me that these are not the ultimate words of wisdom. (Truly. I would love to hear your reasoning in the comments.) The quote resonated with me. It still resonates with me. In a well worded way, it tells us all to grow up and explains how to do it and why it’s necessary, not only for ourselves but also to help rid the world of negative behaviors. Mr. Teixeira’s quote also reminded me what The Happiness Project taught me. Sometimes, when striving for happiness, you have to remove certain things from your life, whether it’s simply a negative thought or even time spent with a particular individual.

While some of the quote may seem harsh, it’s all necessary. High school and college were times when many people were focused on excessive criticism, the will to please and academic arrogance. (Though I will say that if I’ve learned anything from growing up, it’s that grown ups are not all that grown up. But that’s another thought for another day.) Stop making excuses for poor loyalty and if you don’t like animals, parasite – be gone! (no seriously, who are you?) please watch this video of a baby lamb and then we can talk.

In all fairness, I do understand that some of the suggestions may be a bit hard to cut out, particularly in the work place or where family is involved. My one amendment would be to add a line about functioning despite the parasites and being able to strive for your best self. Blah blah blah something about the fight making us stronger, you know – standard life coach stuff. Basically, all Teixeira is saying is to cut the chains, grow up, and be happy, and he says it very well.