The one true thing is awareness, consciousness itself.
From what cognizance is this point being made? From a process of investigative mentating or from an experience of cessation (of all aggregates) and their restarting in a
skandhic progression (rupa, vedana, saññā, saṅkhāra, viññāṇa)?
Because I would agree that there is something especially useful and akin-to-optimism/brightness/bright-alertness in viññāṇa, however, I personally could not really get this understanding without seeing all aggregates go away, then come back up sequentially; I was too much interested in knowing the logic and organization of a practice over actual practice (sitting with one's mind can be extremely hard going without tools and a map...and I had such ingrained avoidance habits for the last several years leading to not-so-much-actual-practice until the past 1.5 years). In hindsite, had I been a completely faithful person (in the theism of my upbringing or buddhism) and not erred away from the
four immeasurables , then my actions without a view of cessation would have been the same as with a view of cessation and re-ignition of aggregates.
Striving for a good meditation is one of its worst habits, or striving for something interesting or life-changing during a meditation.
I agree, so long as one
is practicing and striving (making dedicated, focused, sincere efforts), be it in meditation (e.g., just to stay awake or non-harmful) or actualism or mindfulness is often par for the course. If the aspect of mind that can ruminate and query and fret and desire, etc, is placed repeatedly in a task like object attention or metta, then that mind will give up on its wanderings and, without any effort to gain or add, it will naturally show and develop single-pointedness and other aspects of the mental faculty, including shutting down. It is a positively reinforcing spokes-event for friendly mindfulness/actualism/noting/kasina/gazing at bodies of water/etc.
Then when I get into the flow, trying to notice that 'striving for change' creates tension and discomfort when it pops up again. If I can manage this easy state, then the change that does happen is qualitatively different to the type of change my ego manufactures.
I like "easy state". What kind of practice(s) are you doing? What makes easy state(ing) unmanageable (or is "If I can manage this easy state..." a modest figure of speech)?