Men can only be happy when they do not assume that the object of life is happiness.
–George Orwell, Critical Essays (1946)
I pause a bit anymore when I use the word happy, especially when referring to it in the context of anything long-term, such as it being a goal to be pursued. My feeling about this is much like that described by Orwell above, that you can’t actively pursue a short-lived reaction.
And as pleasant as it might be when we are happy, happiness is generally a temporary state of being.
Maybe I am arguing semantics here this morning. Probably. Maybe the word that better describes a similar feeling that might be pursued for the long-term is satisfied.
Satisfied encompasses those higher moments of happiness we experience while at the same time recognizing that things might have been better and worse. It indicates a level of contentment with things as they are.
For example, I am often happy. But not always and seldom on some days. On the other hand, I am satisfied as a whole with where I am in life. I accept both the highs of happiness and the lows of sadness as a fact of life and am most content when I am in that middle ground between them.
Nowadays (what a great word!) I try to find moments of happiness to temper the angst and trepidation of this sometimes-maddening modern world. These temporary moments keep me in that middle ground.
Keeps me satisfied.
And that’s nothing to sneeze at.
Actually, this babble of me thinking out loud this morning is all a pretext for me wanting to share a version of Happy, the Pharrell Williams mega-hit from a while back, from Postmodern Jukebox featuring Swedish jazz musician/multi-instrumentalist/dancer Gunhild Carling. I shared this a couple of years ago and smiled when I came across it again this morning.
Seeing Gunhild play three trumpets at one time, tap-dance and move seamlessly from instrument to instrument– 10 in all including the bagpipes!– made me happy in a very satisfying way.
All I can ask.
Clap along if you feel that happiness is the truth….
Redtree Times 