The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness.
–William Saroyan
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This quote from William Saroyan caught me off guard when I came across it, mainly because it captured in a few words the lesson I had finally gleaned from years of seeking this elusive beast called happiness. And a beast it was, a creature from mythology. I had made it into a thing that had special powers and was like the Abominable Snowman— rumored to exist but seldom seen.
I discovered over time that this was a mistake.
I was picturing happiness as a once in a life thing, some sort of peak moment, when it was, in fact, just a small part of our being human. The key in Saroyan’s short quote is the word knowing. Once we begin to know who and what we are and are not, the need for peak moments subsides as we understand that there is a sort of happiness in the smaller moments of simply being. It is not a gleeful, heart-pounding joy but a comfortable warm glow and an inner sense of satisfaction that often comes to you at what seems to be the most mundane of moments.
Stopping just now and looking out my studio window, for example. A light snow is falling almost in time to Paul Desmond’s sax that is mingling with Dave Brubeck’s piano and I sip my coffee. It is gray and almost gloomy but I feel this glow, this satisfaction in the moment. It is not happiness as most might define the word . It is just a moment of knowing that I exist in the world, that I am here to bear witness to the small wonders that take place around me in my small corner of the universe.
And that’s good enough.
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I chose the painting at the top, A Consideration of Grace from back in 2002, because there is something like the feeling I am describing today in it for me. Maybe it can be described as grace. I don’t know…
Redtree Times 
There came a time in my own life when I realized I was drawing a distinction between happiness and being content. Happiness seems to me more ephemeral, and more related to circumstances. Being content isn’t dependent on external circumstances. I rarely pull out St. Paul, but I couldn’t help but think of his words to the crew over at Philippi:
” I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
That process of learning can be a little rocky, of course. 🙂
Did you ever see this photo of the dancing tree when it was making the rounds? Your trees reminded me of it. They seem to be dancing, too.
That has to be a bonsai, don’t you think?
On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 8:46 AM, Redtree Times wrote:
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You’re right about happiness being a product of circumstance whereas contentment can be part of our makeup. Paul puts it well.
On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 8:44 AM, Redtree Times wrote:
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I don’t know. When it was going around, there were some people who swore they had seen the real tree, and that it was full-sized and not photoshopped. After a while, I gave up trying to figure out yea or nay, and just tucked the photo into my files. 🙂
I checked and found this link that claims the photo is real and taken in British Columbia. The tree is an Alanthus Altissima aka Tree of Heaven or Ghetto Palm, which is supposedly very abundant as an invasive species in that region. So real it is. Interesting.
On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 9:42 AM, Redtree Times wrote:
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Simply gorgeous, Gary! Jesse Gardner Assistant Director
West End Gallery 12 West Market St. Corning, NY 14830 (607) 936-2011
Website ~ Blog ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ LinkedIn
Thank you for supporting the arts!
Thanks, Jesse!
On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 10:34 AM, Redtree Times wrote:
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