![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiVP6nS65sTsUWjrHUISkqKW3t0d49mlKYIOvI4BnaU_-J60XcaMnujgsNGUN4u_Kyu3dMEgzWof-JFdYiHLNfQq0qECbl77G-o7oYIuitUqeBcnla_jRuwtpwO2crnawKPUvK1GLiLXFBKZ09vZL9w5LBhbEW9ObRJmB9i-vIbpsq-rFIwO5oMHKAtreA\/s1600\/1000031210.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n\nClap along if you know what happiness is to you.<\/i>\n<\/p>\n
\u2014 Pharrell Williams. \u201cHappy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Founded in 2000 by the Society of Happy People<\/a> (SOHP), Happiness Happens Month<\/a> is observed each August as a celebration of the things that make us happy. To mark the occasion I posted the following request on our social media channels. <\/p>\n
\nARE YOU HAPPY? I\u2019m writing a blog post about happiness and would welcome your thoughts and experiences. What does happiness mean to you? What makes you happy? What was the last time you felt happy?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The contributions are presented here with only minor edits for clarity. <\/p>\n
\nHappiness for me is when I\u2019m dissatisfied enough to get on with something. Happiness = getting satisfaction out of life. (Paul)\n<\/p>\n
I\u2019m happy as I\u2019ve got my 2 kids by my side, through the good and bad days. (Joanne)\n<\/p>\n
Happiness, for me, is a carefree, safe, content feeling. (Sandra)\n<\/p>\n
I am happy everyday because I am choosing the lifestyle that makes me feel grounded and content. Enjoying the beauty of nature makes me happy. (Pam)\n<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a conversation not a blurb. (Ronin)\n<\/p>\n
Good question … (Andrea)\n<\/p>\n
I\u2019m genuinely happy all the time. Enjoying my family and friends. Also, the life that was given to me. (Christine)\n<\/p>\n
Generally I see myself as happy … I\u2019m happy in the morning, when I go to work, at work, and when driving home … But deep down … when I think about it, I\u2019m not that happy … Lots of questions about getting older, losing friends to cancer, should I consider early retirement (to follow other dreams)… Where would I like to live next (we\u2019re looking for a new house to follow our dreams) and what\u2019s on my bucket list ….. So happy yes, but also sad, worried, and thinking a lot. (Charlotte)\n<\/p>\n
I\u2019m happy and grateful all the time, happy to be alive and to have gotten another chance after the two strokes to look after myself better and become my true self at last. (Paula)\n<\/p>\n
Happy. I don\u2019t know if I know or remember what that is. I\u2019m grateful every day. I\u2019m content a lot of the time. What is happy? (Tracy)\n<\/p>\n
The day I learned not to look sideways and run my own race. Been happy and content ever since. (Andy)\n<\/p>\n
Happiness can be that nothing bad is going on around you \u2014 family and friends are all well. If a favourite TV programme or film is going to be on, that can make me happier, or if a good band will be playing at a nearby venue (preferably free to enter). (Lesley)\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
I\u2019ve always mistrused happiness. I\u2019m going to explore this more thoroughly in a separate post but I\u2019d rather live a life that\u2019s creatively engaged, challenged, and fulfilled. I can echo Tracy\u2019s words and say that I don\u2019t know if I know what happiness is, but I\u2019m content a lot of the time. That said, there are things that make me happy. Happy places, where my heart and mind feel at ease. Music can make me happy, either in itself or for the memories it evokes. Good times spent with good people. <\/p>\n
I\u2019ve had several conversations which have contributed to my understanding of happiness. Ryan highlighted the role stability plays in our lives and its relationship to happiness. That includes financial stability, though there are many different ways we can feel secure and stable. We touched on how happiness means different things to different people, and how its meaning can change as our life experience develops. That\u2019s echoed in the contributions from Joanne and Christine who mention their families amongst the reasons for their happiness. Ryan also commented on the happiness (we might label it relief) we feel when something difficult or bad ends. This aligns with Paula\u2019s gratitude and happiness at recovering from ill health. <\/p>\n
Fran reminded me that the first article in the United States Declaration of Independence includes \u201cLife, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness\u201d amongst the \u201ccertain unalienable Rights\u201d afforded to all. We discussed gratitude and optimism as potential routes to happiness, as well as things that make us unhappy. \u201cWe both get very irritated and \u2018unhappy\u2019 when things don\u2019t go as planned,\u201d Fran pointed out. \u201cSo maybe everything else counts as \u2018happy\u2019?\u201d She also shared that \u201cI\u2019m generally happy because I am finally not doing things that make me unhappy!\u201d That wisdom is echoed in Andy\u2019s comment that he’s been happy and content ever since he \u201clearned not to look sideways and [to] run my own race.\u201d Taking responsibility for our happiness is a valuable lesson.<\/p>\n
Jen and I agreed that the ups and downs of life are what give it meaning. \u201cBeing happy all the time just doesn\u2019t feel real,\u201d she said. \u201cWho can be happy 24\/7? Life can come at you in so many different ways.\u201d It\u2019s clear from the comments that some people do feel happy and grounded most if not all of the time. This may reflect a difference in how people define happiness. Jen and I explored the difference between feeling<\/i> happy \u201clike when you are doing something you enjoy\u201d and being<\/i> happy. We also touched on the idea that chasing happy feelings can be a way for people to distract themselves from the harsher aspects of life. There\u2019s nothing wrong with setting our burdens aside for a while and enjoying ourselves. It becomes unhealthy, however, if we use the pursuit of happiness as a means of ignoring what\u2019s really going on for us. <\/p>\n
Paul\u2019s comment put an interesting twist on this interplay between the good stuff and the not so good stuff. At first reading I thought he\u2019d accidentally written dissatisfied instead of satisfied, but then I understood what he meant. Feeling \u201cdissatisfied enough to get on with something\u201d is the kind of creative tension I recognise in my own life. My writing is often inspired by moments of frustration or stuckness. A sense that something needs to be expressed, explored, or worked through. That tension is the wellspring of creativity. For me as for Paul, happiness equates to \u201cgetting satisfaction out of life.\u201d <\/p>\n
Much of what Charlotte wrote resonated with me, including the uncertainty of impending retirement and how hard it can be to feel happy when others are struggling. Happiness can feel inappropriate when those we care about are living through difficult times. I think that\u2019s something many of us have felt at one time or another. The connection between our happiness and how others are doing is expressed well by Lesley who noted that \u201cHappiness can be that nothing bad is going on around you \u2014 family and friends are all well.\u201d <\/p>\n
I\u2019m grateful to everyone who responded to my request for contributions and to those who\u2019ve shared their thoughts and experience elsewhere in conversation. I couldn\u2019t have written this blog post without you, nor the one to follow in which I take a deeper look at my personal relationship with happiness. <\/p>\n
Until then, be happy, whatever that means to you.<\/p>\n
Further Reading<\/h3>\n
The Society of Happy People (orginally The Secret Society of Happy People) was founded in 1998 by Pamela Gail Johnson \u201cto provide a missing voice for those who are happy and want to express it without having other people rain on their parade.\u201d According to the SOHP website<\/a>, Happiness Happens Month \u201creminds us that happiness can be found in even little things that we might not notice and that spreading the same joy amongst others can help make the world a better place.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n