On March 20, 2013 the United Nations celebrated the first ever International Day of Happiness, decreeing that every human on earth has the right to pursue happiness. Sadly there is no possible way to insure that all people actually have a shot at feeling joyful, even if for only a day, but it is a noble cause. Perhaps a bit more publicity for the event might have been in order. It was promoted so quietly that I actually missed it altogether, as I suspect many did. I luckily had a most pleasant day but I wonder how many souls were too busy attempting to survive in a sometimes quite threatening world to be able to pause for twenty four hours to enjoy life the way that the UN intended?

Here in my tiny corner of the world March 20 was a sunny first day of spring with a nip of coolness in the air. In other words, for me the weather could not have been better suited to lifting my spirits. The fact that I had just completed a most lovely time camping with my grandchildren and then celebrated my sister-in-law’s retirement with my extended family heightened my spirits so much so that I found myself thanking God for the blessings that He has bestowed upon me. A mini-reunion with high school friends for the purpose of planning our fiftieth anniversary fling later this year brought laughter inside my heart. An evening Skype session with one of my grandsons was like the cherry on top of a rather perfect day.  

The truth is that I am quite happy and content most of the time as are the people that I know. Of course we encounter challenges that steal away our joy from time to time. The ups and downs are a natural part of the human experience. Our bodies have the capacity to both smile and cry. We may feel secure or quite frightened. We never really know from moment to moment what we may encounter as we wander on our journeys. I am certain that even as I managed to feel the spirit of happiness on the day set aside for all of humanity, there were countless souls who felt quite the opposite through no fault of their own. We can decree that everyone should be free to be happy but the reality is that some of us have a far greater chance of actually achieving uplifting emotions than others. 

We complain a great deal here in America. At any given moment we seem to be dissatisfied with our lives. There never appears to be enough to appease everyone. Our nation has a chronic habit of seeing the glass as being half full. While there are certainly legitimate problems to be addressed we hear so much negativity that we often come to believe that we live in some kind of hell hole from which there is little chance of escape. The truth is that the vast majority of our population is better off than most of the people in the world today. Somehow we have a difficult time finding the kind of contentment that pollsters tell us exists in Denmark, deemed the happiest place on earth. When I reflect on this I have to ask if Denmark is really better or if the people have simply chosen to enjoy what they have rather than to insist on an elusive perfection. 

There are people on this planet dealing with horrific situations. I read today that the mentally ill in Indonesia are treated as though they have been invaded by evil spirits. They are often locked away in dark rooms, chained like wild animals and barely acknowledged with any form of human decency. We have watched either with indignation or indifference while thousands of our brothers and sisters in the Middle East have been subjected to terror and genocide. Poverty, disease and a lack of the most basic necessities defines the daily routine of countless people across the globe. Somehow even in the most dire situations there always are those who manage to find a spark of happiness. The human spirit is often the most remarkable when the times are the toughest.

Those who endured the Holocaust speak with wonder of fellow prisoners who kept a sense of humor in those death camps. In fact, psychologists have noted that the people who hung on to shreds of optimism were the most likely to survive. Even after witnessing horrors too terrible to describe so many individuals went on to lead very happy and productive lives. Of course they never forgot what they had endured but rather than dedicating their existences to anger and negativity they chose to move forward by concentrating on the goodness that still exists in profusion on our planet. 

We are naturally drawn to happy people. They are the ones who somehow find ways to keep their worries at bay and to enjoy the simple moments of each day. They take control of their lives rather than allowing fate to rule over them. They often work very hard to pull themselves out of the dilemmas that stalk them. They rise and fall and rise again. They seem to understand that life is a series of challenges and that they have the power to decide how they will react to troubles. 

I know so many individuals who have had very rough times and yet they end up inspiring the rest of us with their resilience and determination to maintain balance in their souls. A long time friend and colleague is battling cancer with a sense of humor that radiates even on the days when she is hardly able to move. The mother of one of my former students has endured the untimely death of her precious daughter while teaching us all how to carry on even as we are faced with the unspeakable. I have watched a young man fail in achieving his goals only to fight even harder to ultimately get where he wants to be. He touches the hearts of those who know him because his faith and belief in himself only grows stronger. One of my cousins just returned from helping the people of Haiti. Her brilliant smile tells the story of how giving of oneself brings the ultimate in contentment. The very happiest people among my friends have not avoided pitfalls or tragedy but they have decided to deal with them without rancor or jealousies or defeat. They literally will themselves to find the silver lining in each situation that they encounter. I suspect that somewhere on earth on this very day there is someone living in abject poverty and squalor who somehow still manages to find a reason to smile. This is the ultimate beauty of the human spirit.

It is unfortunate that we have to actually designate a particular day in which to encourage the world to be happy. It is sad that even in a land of plenty like ours there are so many who feel dissatisfaction more often than joy. There is still much to be done to improve the lot of all of humanity but we need not be so intensely serious that we drive the joy out of our lives. A day like the International Day of Happiness should remind us that as long as we are still drawing breath we have the capacity to find reasons to be content. It is a worthy goal to learn how to be happy. There’s no better time to start trying than now.