An epiphany about happiness

I've had an epiphany about happiness. Happiness is the uplifting of the spirit when we encounter something good that we didn't work for, or didn't deserve. Many of us spend most of our lives putting time and effort into our work, hoping that it will somehow translate to happiness -- like it's a payoff from an investment. But when we eventually get what we've worked for, it's in exchange for the time and energy we sacrificed for it. That's not happiness. That's just a fair transaction: what we expect to bring us joy is simply getting back what we had put in in the first place.

When I say 'didn't deserve' I don't mean that we had either stolen or committed a crime for it. Theft and committing crimes are themselves a kind of work too. The plotting, the scheming, the execution, but mostly the guilt and fear from taking a risk of being caught and punished (which last even after we're caught and punished) also take a significant toll on our time and energy. So while a successful crime may bring some satisfaction in a job well done, that still doesn't amount to happiness.

To find happiness, we should look beyond ourselves and the work that we task ourselves with. Happiness is in appreciating the colours of a stunning sunset, the joy of freedom in a soaring bird's call, the acceptance of friends and family who take us as we are, warts and quirks, and all. None of these come with any personal effort we've put in. They're not anything we deserve. They're out there for anyone to take in when we open our senses to what is already in the world, and from the gratitude for being able to perceive them.

Happiness isn't a reward. It's the understanding that we've been blessed enough to see, hear, touch, taste, and smell the blessings life offers us every day. Yes, we still have to work hard to pay our bills, yet happiness isn't for us to enjoy tomorrow when all our bills are paid. Happiness is available for us to enjoy now. All it takes is to look up, especially when all we want is to look down.