John, thank you for including me in your article! I am honored :) And, I feel your Universal Theory of Happiness is true. In midlife I have come to believe that happiness is a choice, and with awareness of my thoughts I can keep a positive outlook and feel good most of the time. The challenge, as you mentioned, is staying positive in difficult times. For me, developing this perspective required getting to the bottom of things, or more accurately, the center of self. I feel that self-love and gratitude are what makes sustaining a positive mindset possible. And one last essential part of the equation: being in the moment, fully present. Living now! Thank you for your inspiring work. Your analogy is very fitting.
“To know great happiness, one must also know great sorrow.”
There is something to the tachyphylaxis which occurs in a state of constant exposure. I choose happiness, and reside within its sphere most of the time, but remain open to experiencing sorrow when it visits. It makes the experience of happiness much more intense.
Bhutan’s government is guided by their measures of GNH (Gross National Happiness). Perhaps they’re on to something?
John, thank you for including me in your article! I am honored :) And, I feel your Universal Theory of Happiness is true. In midlife I have come to believe that happiness is a choice, and with awareness of my thoughts I can keep a positive outlook and feel good most of the time. The challenge, as you mentioned, is staying positive in difficult times. For me, developing this perspective required getting to the bottom of things, or more accurately, the center of self. I feel that self-love and gratitude are what makes sustaining a positive mindset possible. And one last essential part of the equation: being in the moment, fully present. Living now! Thank you for your inspiring work. Your analogy is very fitting.
Happiness, like love, is a choice. Doesn’t come easy, but it’s there for us to embrace. Thank you for so eloquently and elegantly putting it :)
“To know great happiness, one must also know great sorrow.”
There is something to the tachyphylaxis which occurs in a state of constant exposure. I choose happiness, and reside within its sphere most of the time, but remain open to experiencing sorrow when it visits. It makes the experience of happiness much more intense.
Bhutan’s government is guided by their measures of GNH (Gross National Happiness). Perhaps they’re on to something?
GNH - now that’s a statistic I can find joy in!
Reminiscent of "99% practice, 1% theory" by Pattabi Jois (Ashtanga yoga). Question: does content = happy?
Thanks for the comment. I’d say no, content does not always equal happiness. And hopefully neither lead to complacency. Thanks again!