Book excerpt: This might be my last yearnot because I let it beat me but because I have finally found the happiness that Ive been searching for all my life. Ironically, I found it in a place that has nothing to do with music. You see, happiness is the single life essential for which we all long for. We feel happiness when we perform. We feel happiness when we have successful lessons that indicate student learning. We feel happiness when our peers, our colleagues, and our communities love what we have provided. This happiness is what I now refer to as sound living. It has been a journey to finally live soundly. The reason why it is difficult for a music educator to find that true happiness is because we often end up having a conflicting relationship with our passion. We love music, but we hate that we have to validate our existence.