During our no impact week, we had a day devoted to happiness. When I was thinking about what I might do for this day in order to make myself happy, the first things that popped into my mind all had to do with purchasing. I found myself thinking “I want to buy some ice cream” and “I want to buy a new pair of earrings.” Almost immediately after thinking those things, I started feeling guilty. Are these material things really what come to mind when I think about happiness?
Last week in class, we had a discussion about happiness and how most Americans only think they’re happy because they have a lot of stuff. That made me wonder, what is the difference between thinking you’re happy and actually being happy? If you think you are happy, then why can’t that just mean you are happy? I don’t want my happiness to just be based on what I own because I know that won’t mean much at the end of my life, but I’m not sure that we should feel guilty for wanting ice cream in order to make ourselves a little bit happier. I just have to keep reminding myself that the ice cream and the earrings are okay, but the happiness I receive from them isn’t permanent. I want to always remember that the happiness that I gain from relationships and doing work that I’m passionate about is the kind of happiness that lasts and actually means something in the end.
Thursday Night Dinners are the first thing that popped into my head when I thought about this question. Every Thursday at six, my family and neighbors gather together to eat. A typical dinner includes 12 people- three Johanneses, one Nana, four Matthews, one Nanny, and the three children that Lisa watches. The weeks alternate; this week (tonight) it’s at my house and next week it will be at the Matthews’. We have been living in the same place with the same people for twelve years, but Thursday Night Dinner only started recently. It’s the best dinner of the week! The best thing about family dinners is what we do when we aren’t eating. We talk. We sit in the living room and talk about our weeks and all of the funny stuff that’s happened. Since we aren’t all together during the day, we all have different types of stories to tell. If we’re not talking, we’re playing-- Lisa watches three kids, and it is a lot of fun to play with them. As soon as they come in, they ask if they can see the dollhouse. They love playing games and having contests. Every Thursday, even though the food is always good, the companionship is better. Even though I may be stressed about homework, I always make sure I’m at dinner on Thursdays because it give more satisfaction than any grades can.
When I think about happiness my first thought is people. I love spending time with people. Like Suzanne, my family gathers once a week for a big dinner. It is usually on a Saturday night or a Sunday night so that my grandmother has all day to cook. Normally we arrive at my grandmother's house around 5:30 pm and sit in the living room together and talk and watch a sports game, waiting on dinner. Once dinner is ready we all gather around the table and eat delicious, home cooked food and talk about how we have all been. After the food we normally sit around and play cards. We all have a container full of spare change and we use that as our "poker money". I started my collection of change at the age of 10 and it has gotten up to $70 before. If I ever loose a big bet with a good hand my father always gives me my money back, saying I am too young to gamble anyway and shouldn't have to pay the consequences.
Unfortunately, I don't go to many family nights anymore because I am too busy with homework or my friends. I miss my cousins and other family members that come to the family night that I don't see often. So, happiness means fellowship, friends and family. I am never happier than when I am with my friends or family so why do I put my homework and sports before them? I do it because that is what has been hardwired into my mind. From now on, I am going to break the mold and always put my family time first.
Happiness comes in two different forms for me. There is the happiness that originates from my personal time and then there is that which comes from the time I spend with others.
I enjoy solitude. When I have time to myself, I am able to think about anything and everything. Some of my most peaceful moments are right before I go to bed because I am able to think of the past day or a memory. From my times of solitude, I don’t experience elatedness but rather peace. However, I find happiness in the calmness that washes over my mind. This calmness can also come when I’m playing tennis because I focus solely on one thing. I do question this happiness, though, because I enjoy being able to overcome the challenge of a match. I am obviously happy after I win a match, but I also experience joy after I practicing and feeling that I accomplished something. Am I still happy without these rewards? This bond that I create with myself allows me to achieve something or understand myself further. It is what brings calmness in my life, and in turn joy.
The bond experienced between myself and another person is what leads directly to happiness. For different people, this bond can be formed in different ways. With my father, our bantering and sarcastic comments make me laugh. Oftentimes, my family and I are gathered around the table and my father will make a joke to which I will burst out laughing. It might take my mother and sister longer to understand, but it is this connection and understanding of humor between my father and me that makes me laugh. With my friends, it is the nights that we spend together talking until three A.M. that draw us close together. The conversation, our sugar highs, and the slur of words as we start to fall asleep all lead to a fun evening that has me smiling all night long and when I wake up the next morning. However, the happiest moments come with love, something that each of these people gives me. A hug when I’m having a bad day can bring a spark of happiness in my soul, but laughter is true joy in my life. The people that can make me laugh, my father, my friends, loved ones, are those who make me happy.
I find happiness in relationships. There need not be material objects or “stuff.” All I need to make me happy is a bond between my soul and another’s soul or even my own. The connection I feel to other humans and to my own humanity is what creates happiness in my life.
Like Olivia, when Mrs. Gahan said we were going to have a happiness day, a picture immediately popped into my head. My action to achieve happiness would be sleeping. However, throughout the day, I mulled over her suggestions to make ourselves happier. I could not stop thinking about how Suzanne had decided to spend more time with her family. Was I being shallow in my wish for more sleep? Yes, I was sleep deprived, but shouldn't I have wanted to be with my family? Then, I started thinking of other things that make me happy, like staying after Candlelight to talk with friends or watching a thunder storm at night. I also remembered how often I wish that I could talk with my mom or friends for just a little longer.
So I decided that happiness is taking pleasure in the daily minutia. We cannot just look forward to the big moments, like the one week we vacation in Florida. That trip is short, expensive, and might not happen in this economy. When I say daily minutia, I mean the small, but significant moments of our everyday lives. I enjoy the fall colors on the mountains, the hugs I get from girls in the hall, the night sky, the lunchtime conversations with my friends, and the feeling of peace when I finally fall into bed. So, maybe it is not bad to feel happy when falling asleep, but it probably should not be the happiest moment of my life.
When I looked up the word “happiness” in Merriam Webster, I got three definitions. Prosperity (good fortune), joy (a state of well being and contentment, or a pleasurable or satisfying experience), and felicity. If I were to give my own definition of happiness, I would have gone with the “joy” synonym of feeling content and pleased. The only problem with that definition, however, is that it doesn’t include this: a feeling/emotion/action that doesn’t last. I don’t say this to be a Debbie Downer, I just believe that it’s true. It is so hard to be truly happy for a long extent of time. There are people in your life who aren’t perfect; they hurt your feelings, they are mean even if they aren’t trying to be mean…they simply don’t add up. But it’s not their fault, because they’re not perfect…because no one is perfect. Therefore, how can they add up? This then makes me ask, how can a person be happy 24/7 if the people and things around them are things that aren’t perfect? Because if they are not perfect, can those people or things truly make you happy?.. No.. I have very skewed perceptions of what happiness looks like. In the past two years of my life, two of my best friends have lost their fathers to suicide and a bike accident. I was in the emergency room on the morning that my boyfriend found out about his father, and I was also there when the detective arrived at my girlfriend’s house to tell her family that her father had been found. Since these incidents, I have watched my friends as they have had to suddenly mature and brave through situations that kids of their age should not have to brave through. What has amazed me, though, is that years after losing their fathers, they have been able to find happiness despite their losses. For each friend, it looks very different. Some days are better for them while other days are worse. However, I can still clearly tell when my friends are happy or when they are not. I use them as an example because I feel like this shows what happiness looks like. It comes and it goes. Some days you can feel it, but then it’s suddenly gone. You can have an A in a class but then do poorly on a test, and your whole day is then ruined. Situations like these are small, but they still demonstrate how happiness is a quick feeling. Maybe I am just a hormonal girl (haha)..but that’s how it is for me.
To me, happiness is simply doing what I love. I think people tend to choose what they think is important over what they love. I know I have definitely been guilty of that. For most people, money is what is most important. But are they doing what they love to get that money? Not often. After Beavan spoke in the lunchtime learning, he sat down with my lunch table and just talked to us for a while. I spoke with him a little about how he had helped me to realize that I should just do what I love with my life and not worry about the money. He was extremely encouraging and told us that there is always a way to combine what you love while still making a living. Then he said something that really hit me. He spoke of money as a currency, then went on to say that maybe there are other currencies. Community is a currency. Family is a currency. And so are many other things in our lives. We can be wealthy in other ways than actual money. I really realized through his thoughts on this that in order for me to be happy I need to do what I love, not what people tell me to love.
After Mr. Tucker dismissed us from afternoon activities Tuesday afternoon, I found myself in a state of pure, childlike joy. I was so excited to have the rest of the day to do what I wanted to do. As I was walking down the halls, leaving campus, I wasn’t thinking about having an extra hour to do homework or work on college applications. In fact, I asked Sarah Douglas to go grab a cup of tea with me. Although plans with SD didn’t fully develop, it was the thought of sitting down with a good friend and enjoying life and its simple pleasures. Instead, I went home and sat on my porch. I sat there and watched the storm come towards me. There was an eerie calm, then the sky opened up and the rain came down over my lawn in blankets of heavy raindrops. I started laughing. I was so amazed by the weather and it simply made me smile. To me, happiness is living life. And life is made up of the interaction s and activities people engage in. Happiness can be found in simple pleasures, such as enjoying good company over tea or watching the weather change. People just have to open their eyes to simple happiness. I find happiness in living day to day, like Morgan said. The funny joke a friend makes on the way to math, a phone call with my brother, riding my bike through my neighborhood; all these things bring happiness into my life. I just keep my eyes wide open and try to see the best in all I do.
We sit on the back porch finishing our home-cooked meal, talking about the day as the sun goes down. We sing the Redneck 12 days of Christmas the day before Christmas Eve. We sit at the dinner table and joke about anything that comes up and laugh for a long time. This is where my happiness comes from -- my family traditions and the smallest everyday moments. They bring me so much joy I can't bear to think about doing without them next year. When my older brother moved to college and left me with my younger brother and my parents I was a little worried about how our family would function with such a large hole missing. But it only took about a month for me to see what good could come from it. I now have more time to devote to building my relationship with my little brother, who has become one of my closest friends and my confidante. Distance has also helped me strengthen my relationship with my older brother; we make it a point to talk and hang out whenever he is home and we talk every once in a while when he isn't. I love my brothers and they are a major source of my happiness. Sometimes I forget how happy my family makes me, but all I have to do is take a step back and look at an old picture or just remember a funny memory to realize that some of my favorite memories have been of times with my family.
Happiness does not have a single-sided denotation. There are separate categories of happiness, each having a deeper meaning not expressed in a dictionary definition. I believe there are two main types of happiness, short term spikes of happiness which arise from a moment of something good happening and long term happiness that comes from religion, friends and family. I have come to the conclusion that the root of either type of happiness comes from changing a negative in your life to a positive. That switch can come from something as small as playing a board game with family instead of getting on Facebook to the extent of changing your whole lifestyle to eliminate wastefulness. Short term happiness is the result of a positive occurrence that temporarily distracts from any negative circumstances. The reason it is not permanent is because the negative still exists. Long term happiness is an attitude. It's the mindset you have in a situation that produces a positive response. It can show by being grateful for what you do have instead of what you still want; It can be choosing to see the good in all things good or bad. So what does happiness look like to me? It's making a new friend when I feel alone. It's my relationship with God that gives me my positivity. It's what I feel when I get a compliment, or someone goes out of their way to do something nice for me. It's what I feel when other people are happy. Happiness to me is so many things that I can not post them all on the blog, but most of all, it is what I want always in my life.
When I think of happiness, I don't think of a person bouncing of the walls with a huge smile on his face. Instead, I think of contentment, satisfaction, and peacefulness. I don't think that making an "A" on my next physics test will bring me happiness. It will bring me excitement, but not true happiness.
I find happiness in human interaction. I love it when I can make other people laugh. It feels so good to know that I brightened someone's day. I find happiness in helping people. I can't control my smile as I help a friend with a homework problem. This is because I know that because of me, I helped her understand a specific pre-cal topic. Maybe this is because it makes me feel important, but it is also because I love to make other peoples' lives easier.
Honestly, happiness for me just comes down to a good attitude. People always ask me why I am happy all of the time. I could never give a straight answer. But now, as I think about it, I am happy when I am not mad. I am happy when I am not frustrated. I am happy when I am not mean. I am happy when I am not sad. Being mad, frustrated, mean, and sad are all characteristics of a bad attitude. So, I am happy when I am not having a bad attitude. In other words, I am happy when I have a good attitude.
I believe that one’s happiness is personal. If somebody thinks they are happy doing something, then another person shouldn’t tell them they aren’t. So happiness for me comes from what most people have mentioned above: family. With one of my sisters in college and the other living in New York City, I don’t get to see either of them very often. My happiness comes from when my family is all together, maybe around a Thanksgiving meal or outside barbecuing in the summer. Although I love my friends, I believe the idea that friends will come and go but family sticks with you forever. So, I really do cherish the time we have together. That is where my ultimate happiness comes from.
But like Olivia said, I believe you can get happiness from smaller, everyday moments as well. So happiness for me is: being able to sleep in an extra hour; watching a movie with friends; sending off a package to a soldier overseas; playing lacrosse; making videos with friends; playing with my dog Jake; midterm elections; playing cards; stopping at Smoothie King on the way home; redbox; playing an instrument; seeing shows or plays; donating money for make a wish; snow days; skyping with family and friends far away; beating Baylor; playing wii golf with my grandpa…..etc…
To me, just because money or technology is involved does not that the happiness should be deemed insignificant or not real. If I get happiness from renting a one dollar dvd, then I get happiness from renting a one dollar dvd. It may be a much smaller dose than the feelings I get from spending time with my family, but it’s happiness all the same.
I’ve been in this phase of “helping our environment” since reading NIM, so naturally the topic’s come up a lot at home. I wouldn’t say environmentalism is exactly high up there on my dad’s “to-do-list” after he comes home from work, wants to play the piano, and have a glass of wine. Lets just say he’s not too concerned with throwing away a napkin after dinner. Don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t disregard the planet, but saving the planet today, isn’t a main priority (he’s far from a tree hugger). But who am I to judge? If I’m being honest, it’s not my main priority now, and it definitely wasn’t before reading the book. I’ve pointed the finger for so long at him, and at others, never acknowledging why I can’t own up to my priorities. I believe as humans it is our responsibility to be educated on the world we live in, and take care of our planet. Between the responsibility we have to save the world, and the fact that we all want to enjoy life, people get confused and try to pick a side. Shouldn’t the two coincide? If I’m happy, hopefully I’ll mesh my passions and skills to benefit the earth and its citizens. Then “we” win, not just “I”.
But I’ve almost gotten fed up with thinking through happiness so much. And that clicked with me today when Beavan spoke. I realized to be happy I have to be a little bit more like—well, me. I can accept my dad’s priorities, because I know he’s doing what he loves, and if that makes him happy, all fingers are now pointing back at me. What am I going to do to be happy? I’m going to be “me”, and incorporate my passions and skills into an environment that benefits others.
When thinking of what makes me happy, a few different things come to mind. My first thoughts are of a few material things that I could buy, holidays, and weather; all things that are not permanent. But, after thinking about this question, I realize that what truly makes happy is spending time with others. Now, I do enjoy alone time when it's necessary, but I've found that I'm the most happy when I'm with another person. When I'm alone, I'm tend to let everything bad that has happened weigh down on me and ruin my day. But, even after a bad day, if I spend time with someone I care about, my mood can be instantly lifted. My family is the most important thing to me, and I know the majority of my happiest times were spent with them on holidays, vacations, and just regular days.
Our discussion of happiness brought out a lot of questions for me. I began to wonder if anyone could ever truly be happy, or if happiness was just a temporary thing that came and went in bursts. I also began to wonder if it was possible to choose to be happy. After thinking about all of these questions, I found that I don't completely agree with any of these statements, but rather take certain parts from each. I believe that it is possible to be truly happy, but I also believe happiness comes and goes. Different situations in life will temporarily take away happiness, but it is possible to gain it back. I also believe that certain types of happiness are temporary, like buying new items or a happiness that comes with the holiday seasons. Mainly, I do believe it is possible to choose to be happy. Now, you can't chose what happens to you in your life, but you can chose to be optimistic no matter what comes your way. It is said that if you do something over and over again, it will become habit. So, what if we chose to wake up every day and try our hardest to be happy? I think we could benefit from this. We would at least be in a better mood. I am not suggesting we should never be mad or sad or allow ourselves to feel any other emotion than happiness, and I do not believe that it is necessary to be happy all the time, but then again, who wants to be sad all the time either?
When I think of happiness I think of something that has the ability to make me extremely content for an extended period of time. I think of my friends, my music, and my love of reading. I am, for the most part, generally very happy when I am with my friends. They can make me laugh when I need it and help me when I'm not strong enough. As for my music, I feel an exhilaration that is incomparable when I am listening to my iPod and singing along. It is so relaxing and so much fun. Books. I have loved to read since I was very little and nothing can take me from nearly crying to laughing like a loon to incredibly angry to giggling uncontrollably. They take me away from the monotony of daily life and into to world of their choosing. In fact, all of my main sources of happiness do this, they are an escape from the insanity that is our schedule and give me a moment of joy.
Looking at the things that bring me joy, I realized that two of them could be bought. Yes they are material items, but they are cherished, not just used once and tossed away never to be seen again. When I get an ipod, I generally use it till it wears out and with books that I love, I read them over and over again. Sure, there are things that aren't like my ipod or my books that bring me fleeting happiness like a really wonderful meal or a prom dress or generally a lot of things that aid commercialism. But I can gain happiness from simple things like gorgeous flowers and cute animals and things that are very much natural and not part of the capitalist system. In the end though, all of this is fleeting. Happiness is like a churning ocean full of high waves and low depths-a person can never be entirely happy or (hopefully) entirely sad because this world isn't something that a constant like that could exist in.
Like Eller, Tuesday when we were excused from school I found myself happier than most days, but not just because we were excused from school. As I walked outside to my car expecting tornado like weather I encountered a beautiful day, a sun shining down on me. I put my things in my trunk and I couldn’t help but pause, and take in the day. I truly felt happy, I felt at peace. This happiness was different than any other kind of happy I feel during the day, it was not busy and it was not loud. It was silent, calm, simple. Somehow in that beautiful weather everything made sense again, and I was happy. It was a different happy than the conventional happy we have discussed in class. I wasn’t laughing, or smiling, or infatuated with an item. Somehow it was better than all that. I had satisfaction, confidence and assurance in the universe.
Happiness to me looks like someone being comfortable with themselves and confident. Happiness is not worrying about what people think about you and being able to be yourself. Happiness for me, personally, is whenever I am surrounded by my family and my friends. The love I share with them is what makes me comfortable and confident with myself.
Whenever I heard about the day we had devoted to happiness, I invited my best friends and by boyfriend to all go out to eat. Being surrounded by them after school instead of sitting at home alone really made me happy. Even just doing something out of the normal go home, do homework, talk on skype or facebook for a few hours, and then go to bed made me happier.
So basically, happiness can be summed up to me as many things. Doing something out of the norm, being surrounded by those I love or by those who love me, or just feeling good about myself. I think that more than anything, happiness is a decision. In all of these situations, it is myself who is causing myself to be happy or unhappy due to choice I make. If I wake up in the morning and think how much I wish I were still sleeping, then I will have a bad day, but if I wake up and think that I am happy to be alive, then my day will be much better. So whatever you do, you can make it something that makes you happy if you just have that outlook.
During our no impact week, we had a day devoted to happiness. When I was thinking about what I might do for this day in order to make myself happy, the first things that popped into my mind all had to do with purchasing. I found myself thinking “I want to buy some ice cream” and “I want to buy a new pair of earrings.” Almost immediately after thinking those things, I started feeling guilty. Are these material things really what come to mind when I think about happiness?
ReplyDeleteLast week in class, we had a discussion about happiness and how most Americans only think they’re happy because they have a lot of stuff. That made me wonder, what is the difference between thinking you’re happy and actually being happy? If you think you are happy, then why can’t that just mean you are happy? I don’t want my happiness to just be based on what I own because I know that won’t mean much at the end of my life, but I’m not sure that we should feel guilty for wanting ice cream in order to make ourselves a little bit happier. I just have to keep reminding myself that the ice cream and the earrings are okay, but the happiness I receive from them isn’t permanent. I want to always remember that the happiness that I gain from relationships and doing work that I’m passionate about is the kind of happiness that lasts and actually means something in the end.
Thursday Night Dinners are the first thing that popped into my head when I thought about this question. Every Thursday at six, my family and neighbors gather together to eat. A typical dinner includes 12 people- three Johanneses, one Nana, four Matthews, one Nanny, and the three children that Lisa watches. The weeks alternate; this week (tonight) it’s at my house and next week it will be at the Matthews’. We have been living in the same place with the same people for twelve years, but Thursday Night Dinner only started recently. It’s the best dinner of the week!
ReplyDeleteThe best thing about family dinners is what we do when we aren’t eating.
We talk. We sit in the living room and talk about our weeks and all of the funny stuff that’s happened. Since we aren’t all together during the day, we all have different types of stories to tell. If we’re not talking, we’re playing-- Lisa watches three kids, and it is a lot of fun to play with them. As soon as they come in, they ask if they can see the dollhouse. They love playing games and having contests.
Every Thursday, even though the food is always good, the companionship is better. Even though I may be stressed about homework, I always make sure I’m at dinner on Thursdays because it give more satisfaction than any grades can.
When I think about happiness my first thought is people. I love spending time with people. Like Suzanne, my family gathers once a week for a big dinner. It is usually on a Saturday night or a Sunday night so that my grandmother has all day to cook. Normally we arrive at my grandmother's house around 5:30 pm and sit in the living room together and talk and watch a sports game, waiting on dinner. Once dinner is ready we all gather around the table and eat delicious, home cooked food and talk about how we have all been. After the food we normally sit around and play cards. We all have a container full of spare change and we use that as our "poker money". I started my collection of change at the age of 10 and it has gotten up to $70 before. If I ever loose a big bet with a good hand my father always gives me my money back, saying I am too young to gamble anyway and shouldn't have to pay the consequences.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I don't go to many family nights anymore because I am too busy with homework or my friends. I miss my cousins and other family members that come to the family night that I don't see often. So, happiness means fellowship, friends and family. I am never happier than when I am with my friends or family so why do I put my homework and sports before them? I do it because that is what has been hardwired into my mind. From now on, I am going to break the mold and always put my family time first.
Happiness comes in two different forms for me. There is the happiness that originates from my personal time and then there is that which comes from the time I spend with others.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy solitude. When I have time to myself, I am able to think about anything and everything. Some of my most peaceful moments are right before I go to bed because I am able to think of the past day or a memory. From my times of solitude, I don’t experience elatedness but rather peace. However, I find happiness in the calmness that washes over my mind. This calmness can also come when I’m playing tennis because I focus solely on one thing. I do question this happiness, though, because I enjoy being able to overcome the challenge of a match. I am obviously happy after I win a match, but I also experience joy after I practicing and feeling that I accomplished something. Am I still happy without these rewards? This bond that I create with myself allows me to achieve something or understand myself further. It is what brings calmness in my life, and in turn joy.
The bond experienced between myself and another person is what leads directly to happiness. For different people, this bond can be formed in different ways. With my father, our bantering and sarcastic comments make me laugh. Oftentimes, my family and I are gathered around the table and my father will make a joke to which I will burst out laughing. It might take my mother and sister longer to understand, but it is this connection and understanding of humor between my father and me that makes me laugh. With my friends, it is the nights that we spend together talking until three A.M. that draw us close together. The conversation, our sugar highs, and the slur of words as we start to fall asleep all lead to a fun evening that has me smiling all night long and when I wake up the next morning. However, the happiest moments come with love, something that each of these people gives me. A hug when I’m having a bad day can bring a spark of happiness in my soul, but laughter is true joy in my life. The people that can make me laugh, my father, my friends, loved ones, are those who make me happy.
I find happiness in relationships. There need not be material objects or “stuff.” All I need to make me happy is a bond between my soul and another’s soul or even my own. The connection I feel to other humans and to my own humanity is what creates happiness in my life.
Like Olivia, when Mrs. Gahan said we were going to have a happiness day, a picture immediately popped into my head. My action to achieve happiness would be sleeping. However, throughout the day, I mulled over her suggestions to make ourselves happier. I could not stop thinking about how Suzanne had decided to spend more time with her family. Was I being shallow in my wish for more sleep? Yes, I was sleep deprived, but shouldn't I have wanted to be with my family? Then, I started thinking of other things that make me happy, like staying after Candlelight to talk with friends or watching a thunder storm at night. I also remembered how often I wish that I could talk with my mom or friends for just a little longer.
ReplyDeleteSo I decided that happiness is taking pleasure in the daily minutia. We cannot just look forward to the big moments, like the one week we vacation in Florida. That trip is short, expensive, and might not happen in this economy. When I say daily minutia, I mean the small, but significant moments of our everyday lives. I enjoy the fall colors on the mountains, the hugs I get from girls in the hall, the night sky, the lunchtime conversations with my friends, and the feeling of peace when I finally fall into bed. So, maybe it is not bad to feel happy when falling asleep, but it probably should not be the happiest moment of my life.
When I looked up the word “happiness” in Merriam Webster, I got three definitions. Prosperity (good fortune), joy (a state of well being and contentment, or a pleasurable or satisfying experience), and felicity. If I were to give my own definition of happiness, I would have gone with the “joy” synonym of feeling content and pleased. The only problem with that definition, however, is that it doesn’t include this: a feeling/emotion/action that doesn’t last.
ReplyDeleteI don’t say this to be a Debbie Downer, I just believe that it’s true. It is so hard to be truly happy for a long extent of time. There are people in your life who aren’t perfect; they hurt your feelings, they are mean even if they aren’t trying to be mean…they simply don’t add up. But it’s not their fault, because they’re not perfect…because no one is perfect. Therefore, how can they add up? This then makes me ask, how can a person be happy 24/7 if the people and things around them are things that aren’t perfect? Because if they are not perfect, can those people or things truly make you happy?.. No..
I have very skewed perceptions of what happiness looks like. In the past two years of my life, two of my best friends have lost their fathers to suicide and a bike accident. I was in the emergency room on the morning that my boyfriend found out about his father, and I was also there when the detective arrived at my girlfriend’s house to tell her family that her father had been found. Since these incidents, I have watched my friends as they have had to suddenly mature and brave through situations that kids of their age should not have to brave through. What has amazed me, though, is that years after losing their fathers, they have been able to find happiness despite their losses. For each friend, it looks very different. Some days are better for them while other days are worse. However, I can still clearly tell when my friends are happy or when they are not.
I use them as an example because I feel like this shows what happiness looks like. It comes and it goes. Some days you can feel it, but then it’s suddenly gone. You can have an A in a class but then do poorly on a test, and your whole day is then ruined. Situations like these are small, but they still demonstrate how happiness is a quick feeling. Maybe I am just a hormonal girl (haha)..but that’s how it is for me.
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ReplyDeleteTo me, happiness is simply doing what I love. I think people tend to choose what they think is important over what they love. I know I have definitely been guilty of that. For most people, money is what is most important. But are they doing what they love to get that money? Not often.
ReplyDeleteAfter Beavan spoke in the lunchtime learning, he sat down with my lunch table and just talked to us for a while. I spoke with him a little about how he had helped me to realize that I should just do what I love with my life and not worry about the money. He was extremely encouraging and told us that there is always a way to combine what you love while still making a living.
Then he said something that really hit me. He spoke of money as a currency, then went on to say that maybe there are other currencies. Community is a currency. Family is a currency. And so are many other things in our lives. We can be wealthy in other ways than actual money. I really realized through his thoughts on this that in order for me to be happy I need to do what I love, not what people tell me to love.
After Mr. Tucker dismissed us from afternoon activities Tuesday afternoon, I found myself in a state of pure, childlike joy. I was so excited to have the rest of the day to do what I wanted to do. As I was walking down the halls, leaving campus, I wasn’t thinking about having an extra hour to do homework or work on college applications. In fact, I asked Sarah Douglas to go grab a cup of tea with me. Although plans with SD didn’t fully develop, it was the thought of sitting down with a good friend and enjoying life and its simple pleasures. Instead, I went home and sat on my porch. I sat there and watched the storm come towards me. There was an eerie calm, then the sky opened up and the rain came down over my lawn in blankets of heavy raindrops. I started laughing. I was so amazed by the weather and it simply made me smile.
ReplyDeleteTo me, happiness is living life. And life is made up of the interaction s and activities people engage in. Happiness can be found in simple pleasures, such as enjoying good company over tea or watching the weather change. People just have to open their eyes to simple happiness. I find happiness in living day to day, like Morgan said. The funny joke a friend makes on the way to math, a phone call with my brother, riding my bike through my neighborhood; all these things bring happiness into my life. I just keep my eyes wide open and try to see the best in all I do.
We sit on the back porch finishing our home-cooked meal, talking about the day as the sun goes down. We sing the Redneck 12 days of Christmas the day before Christmas Eve. We sit at the dinner table and joke about anything that comes up and laugh for a long time. This is where my happiness comes from -- my family traditions and the smallest everyday moments. They bring me so much joy I can't bear to think about doing without them next year.
ReplyDeleteWhen my older brother moved to college and left me with my younger brother and my parents I was a little worried about how our family would function with such a large hole missing. But it only took about a month for me to see what good could come from it. I now have more time to devote to building my relationship with my little brother, who has become one of my closest friends and my confidante. Distance has also helped me strengthen my relationship with my older brother; we make it a point to talk and hang out whenever he is home and we talk every once in a while when he isn't. I love my brothers and they are a major source of my happiness.
Sometimes I forget how happy my family makes me, but all I have to do is take a step back and look at an old picture or just remember a funny memory to realize that some of my favorite memories have been of times with my family.
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ReplyDeleteHappiness does not have a single-sided denotation. There are separate categories of happiness, each having a deeper meaning not expressed in a dictionary definition. I believe there are two main types of happiness, short term spikes of happiness which arise from a moment of something good happening and long term happiness that comes from religion, friends and family. I have come to the conclusion that the root of either type of happiness comes from changing a negative in your life to a positive. That switch can come from something as small as playing a board game with family instead of getting on Facebook to the extent of changing your whole lifestyle to eliminate wastefulness. Short term happiness is the result of a positive occurrence that temporarily distracts from any negative circumstances. The reason it is not permanent is because the negative still exists. Long term happiness is an attitude. It's the mindset you have in a situation that produces a positive response. It can show by being grateful for what you do have instead of what you still want; It can be choosing to see the good in all things good or bad.
ReplyDeleteSo what does happiness look like to me? It's making a new friend when I feel alone. It's my relationship with God that gives me my positivity. It's what I feel when I get a compliment, or someone goes out of their way to do something nice for me. It's what I feel when other people are happy. Happiness to me is so many things that I can not post them all on the blog, but most of all, it is what I want always in my life.
When I think of happiness, I don't think of a person bouncing of the walls with a huge smile on his face. Instead, I think of contentment, satisfaction, and peacefulness. I don't think that making an "A" on my next physics test will bring me happiness. It will bring me excitement, but not true happiness.
ReplyDeleteI find happiness in human interaction. I love it when I can make other people laugh. It feels so good to know that I brightened someone's day. I find happiness in helping people. I can't control my smile as I help a friend with a homework problem. This is because I know that because of me, I helped her understand a specific pre-cal topic. Maybe this is because it makes me feel important, but it is also because I love to make other peoples' lives easier.
Honestly, happiness for me just comes down to a good attitude. People always ask me why I am happy all of the time. I could never give a straight answer. But now, as I think about it, I am happy when I am not mad. I am happy when I am not frustrated. I am happy when I am not mean. I am happy when I am not sad. Being mad, frustrated, mean, and sad are all characteristics of a bad attitude. So, I am happy when I am not having a bad attitude. In other words, I am happy when I have a good attitude.
It's all about our outlook on life.
I believe that one’s happiness is personal. If somebody thinks they are happy doing something, then another person shouldn’t tell them they aren’t. So happiness for me comes from what most people have mentioned above: family. With one of my sisters in college and the other living in New York City, I don’t get to see either of them very often. My happiness comes from when my family is all together, maybe around a Thanksgiving meal or outside barbecuing in the summer. Although I love my friends, I believe the idea that friends will come and go but family sticks with you forever. So, I really do cherish the time we have together. That is where my ultimate happiness comes from.
ReplyDeleteBut like Olivia said, I believe you can get happiness from smaller, everyday moments as well. So happiness for me is: being able to sleep in an extra hour; watching a movie with friends; sending off a package to a soldier overseas; playing lacrosse; making videos with friends; playing with my dog Jake; midterm elections; playing cards; stopping at Smoothie King on the way home; redbox; playing an instrument; seeing shows or plays; donating money for make a wish; snow days; skyping with family and friends far away; beating Baylor; playing wii golf with my grandpa…..etc…
To me, just because money or technology is involved does not that the happiness should be deemed insignificant or not real. If I get happiness from renting a one dollar dvd, then I get happiness from renting a one dollar dvd. It may be a much smaller dose than the feelings I get from spending time with my family, but it’s happiness all the same.
I’ve been in this phase of “helping our environment” since reading NIM, so naturally the topic’s come up a lot at home. I wouldn’t say environmentalism is exactly high up there on my dad’s “to-do-list” after he comes home from work, wants to play the piano, and have a glass of wine. Lets just say he’s not too concerned with throwing away a napkin after dinner. Don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t disregard the planet, but saving the planet today, isn’t a main priority (he’s far from a tree hugger). But who am I to judge? If I’m being honest, it’s not my main priority now, and it definitely wasn’t before reading the book. I’ve pointed the finger for so long at him, and at others, never acknowledging why I can’t own up to my priorities. I believe as humans it is our responsibility to be educated on the world we live in, and take care of our planet. Between the responsibility we have to save the world, and the fact that we all want to enjoy life, people get confused and try to pick a side. Shouldn’t the two coincide? If I’m happy, hopefully I’ll mesh my passions and skills to benefit the earth and its citizens. Then “we” win, not just “I”.
ReplyDeleteBut I’ve almost gotten fed up with thinking through happiness so much. And that clicked with me today when Beavan spoke. I realized to be happy I have to be a little bit more like—well, me. I can accept my dad’s priorities, because I know he’s doing what he loves, and if that makes him happy, all fingers are now pointing back at me. What am I going to do to be happy? I’m going to be “me”, and incorporate my passions and skills into an environment that benefits others.
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ReplyDeleteWhen thinking of what makes me happy, a few different things come to mind. My first thoughts are of a few material things that I could buy, holidays, and weather; all things that are not permanent. But, after thinking about this question, I realize that what truly makes happy is spending time with others. Now, I do enjoy alone time when it's necessary, but I've found that I'm the most happy when I'm with another person. When I'm alone, I'm tend to let everything bad that has happened weigh down on me and ruin my day. But, even after a bad day, if I spend time with someone I care about, my mood can be instantly lifted. My family is the most important thing to me, and I know the majority of my happiest times were spent with them on holidays, vacations, and just regular days.
ReplyDeleteOur discussion of happiness brought out a lot of questions for me. I began to wonder if anyone could ever truly be happy, or if happiness was just a temporary thing that came and went in bursts. I also began to wonder if it was possible to choose to be happy. After thinking about all of these questions, I found that I don't completely agree with any of these statements, but rather take certain parts from each. I believe that it is possible to be truly happy, but I also believe happiness comes and goes. Different situations in life will temporarily take away happiness, but it is possible to gain it back. I also believe that certain types of happiness are temporary, like buying new items or a happiness that comes with the holiday seasons. Mainly, I do believe it is possible to choose to be happy. Now, you can't chose what happens to you in your life, but you can chose to be optimistic no matter what comes your way. It is said that if you do something over and over again, it will become habit. So, what if we chose to wake up every day and try our hardest to be happy? I think we could benefit from this. We would at least be in a better mood. I am not suggesting we should never be mad or sad or allow ourselves to feel any other emotion than happiness, and I do not believe that it is necessary to be happy all the time, but then again, who wants to be sad all the time either?
When I think of happiness I think of something that has the ability to make me extremely content for an extended period of time. I think of my friends, my music, and my love of reading. I am, for the most part, generally very happy when I am with my friends. They can make me laugh when I need it and help me when I'm not strong enough. As for my music, I feel an exhilaration that is incomparable when I am listening to my iPod and singing along. It is so relaxing and so much fun. Books. I have loved to read since I was very little and nothing can take me from nearly crying to laughing like a loon to incredibly angry to giggling uncontrollably. They take me away from the monotony of daily life and into to world of their choosing. In fact, all of my main sources of happiness do this, they are an escape from the insanity that is our schedule and give me a moment of joy.
ReplyDeleteLooking at the things that bring me joy, I realized that two of them could be bought. Yes they are material items, but they are cherished, not just used once and tossed away never to be seen again. When I get an ipod, I generally use it till it wears out and with books that I love, I read them over and over again. Sure, there are things that aren't like my ipod or my books that bring me fleeting happiness like a really wonderful meal or a prom dress or generally a lot of things that aid commercialism. But I can gain happiness from simple things like gorgeous flowers and cute animals and things that are very much natural and not part of the capitalist system. In the end though, all of this is fleeting. Happiness is like a churning ocean full of high waves and low depths-a person can never be entirely happy or (hopefully) entirely sad because this world isn't something that a constant like that could exist in.
Like Eller, Tuesday when we were excused from school I found myself happier than most days, but not just because we were excused from school. As I walked outside to my car expecting tornado like weather I encountered a beautiful day, a sun shining down on me. I put my things in my trunk and I couldn’t help but pause, and take in the day. I truly felt happy, I felt at peace. This happiness was different than any other kind of happy I feel during the day, it was not busy and it was not loud. It was silent, calm, simple.
ReplyDeleteSomehow in that beautiful weather everything made sense again, and I was happy. It was a different happy than the conventional happy we have discussed in class. I wasn’t laughing, or smiling, or infatuated with an item. Somehow it was better than all that. I had satisfaction, confidence and assurance in the universe.
Happiness to me looks like someone being comfortable with themselves and confident. Happiness is not worrying about what people think about you and being able to be yourself. Happiness for me, personally, is whenever I am surrounded by my family and my friends. The love I share with them is what makes me comfortable and confident with myself.
ReplyDeleteWhenever I heard about the day we had devoted to happiness, I invited my best friends and by boyfriend to all go out to eat. Being surrounded by them after school instead of sitting at home alone really made me happy. Even just doing something out of the normal go home, do homework, talk on skype or facebook for a few hours, and then go to bed made me happier.
So basically, happiness can be summed up to me as many things. Doing something out of the norm, being surrounded by those I love or by those who love me, or just feeling good about myself. I think that more than anything, happiness is a decision. In all of these situations, it is myself who is causing myself to be happy or unhappy due to choice I make. If I wake up in the morning and think how much I wish I were still sleeping, then I will have a bad day, but if I wake up and think that I am happy to be alive, then my day will be much better. So whatever you do, you can make it something that makes you happy if you just have that outlook.