Can The Worst Day Be The Best Day Ever? Let's Re-define "Good."

Sforno

לא טוב היות האדם לבדו, the purpose of the human species on earth will not be achieved while man who is supposed to reflect the divine image will be left to personally carry out all the menial tasks of daily life on earth by being solitary.

Breishit Rabbah 1:10

"Why does it not say, 'it was good,' on the second [day]? Since the work of the water was not finished - therefore, it is written twice on the third [day]; once for the work of the water and once for the work of the day."

Ohr Hachaim 1:10

"and God saw that it was good," refers also to the gathering of waters, since with it is there life and existence in the world; since the rains in the world are from it, as they, of blessed memory, say (Taanit 9b).

Rabbeinu Bachye

This is a typical expression used by the righteous when they experience mental anguish and despair of the usefulness of their lives. The prophet Elijah used similar language after the failure of his demonstration at Mount Carmel, when he had walked for forty days to Mount Chorev and said to G’d that He should take his soul as he had not proved more effective than other prophets who had preceded him (Kings I 19,4). Another prophet who used similar language as a death wish was Jonah who said to G’d: “please take my life for it is better that I die than live.”

Shorashim.org

From a Hebraic perspective, 'tov' is "practical and functional", not just a simple statement of pleasure. A wrist-watch is "tov", not because it is aesthetically pleasing but because it works. If it breaks it is "ra", bad or dysfunctional. In Gen 1: 31 "God saw all that He had made, and it was very good (tov)" - not "tov" as in simply "pleasing" but rather, that he saw it functioned perfectly

The Purpose Of Life Is Not Happiness: It’s Usefulness by Darius Foroux

For the longest time, I believed that there’s only purpose of life: And that is to be happy.

Right? Why else go through all the pain and hardship? It’s to achieve happiness in some way.And I’m not the only person who believed that. In fact, if you look around you, most people are pursuing happiness in their lives.

That’s why we collectively buy things we don’t need, go to bed with people we don’t love, and try to work hard to get approval of people we don’t like.

Why do we do these things? Just a few short years ago, I did everything to chase happiness.

You buy something, and you think that makes you happy.

You go on holiday, and you think that makes you happy.

Well, I can tell you what’s next: You, chasing something random that you believe makes you happy.It’s all a façade. A hoax. A story that’s been made up. Did Aristotle lie to us when he said:

“Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.”I think we have to look at that quote from a different angle. Because when you read it, you think that happiness is the main goal. And that’s kind of what the quote says as well.But here’s the thing: How do you achieve happiness?Happiness can’t be a goal in itself. Therefore, it’s not something that’s achievable.I believe that happiness is merely a byproduct of usefulness.

When I talk about this concept with friends, family, and colleagues, I always find it difficult to put this into words. But I’ll give it a try here.Most things we do in life are just activities and experiences.

You go shopping.

You have dinner.

You buy a car.

Those things should make you happy, right? But they are not useful. You’re not creating anything. You’re just consuming or doing something. And that’s great.Don’t get me wrong. I love to go on holiday, or go shopping sometimes. But to be honest, it’s not what gives meaning to life.What really makes me happy is when I’m useful. When I create something that others can use. Or even when I create something I can use.

It comes down to this: What are you DOING that’s making a difference?

Did you do useful things in your lifetime? You don’t have to change the world or anything. Just make it a little bit better than before you were born.It’s not anything big. But when you do little useful things every day, it adds up to a life that is well lived. A life that mattered.

The last thing I want is to be on my deathbed and realize there’s zero evidence that I ever existed.Being useful is a mindset. And like with any mindset, it starts with a decision. One day I woke up and thought to myself: What am I doing for this world? The answer was nothing.

And that same day I started writing. For you it can be painting, creating a product, helping elderly, or anything you feel like doing.

Don’t take it too seriously. Don’t overthink it. Just DO something that’s useful. Anything.

Trials and Tribulations by Rabbi Jack Abramowitz

In the six instances of trials in the Torah, we see that trials are the tests through which God demonstrates the faith of individuals or nations.

This idea may be a little difficult to process. After all, no one witnessed the binding of Isaac except for God and Abraham, and God even said, “Now I know that you fear God…” (Genesis 22:12). Elsewhere, the Torah says, “Hashem your God tests you to know whether you love…” (Deuteronomy 13:4). This makes it seem as if trials are for God’s benefit, which is baffling as God already knows all. So what is the real meaning of the tests we endure?

We see from the Torah that the sole purpose of trials is to teach a person what he should do or what he should believe. The trial itself is not the goal, it’s the means to an end.