Taking happiness by storm, one step at a time. ♥
Taking
Happiness by Storm
If the past sixteen years of my existence have
taught me anything valuable it would have to be that the smallest things are
not only what count in life but also what make it worthwhile. No, this is not a
new groundbreaking theory and yes, I wish I had come up with it myself. But the
point of the matter is, as often as I have come across this statement, it is
only recently that I have truly acknowledged its relevance in my life. Say for
instance the way in which I came across the novel I am currently reading, The
Happiness Project. It came to me by mere coincidence, a classic case of
serendipity. Call it what you may—kismet, the law of attraction, or irony—I
believe that this encounter was a means to a special end, my happiness. As such,
one valid explanation stands: the universe brought it to me.
The period between the ages of fifteen and
seventeen is a critical transition phase in the average teenager’s life that
marks the point in which adolescents take their first steps in the pursuit of
happiness. I can confidently say that for a while now I have been caught in
this zone, what I like to call the “boiling point” of teenhood. Certain
questions have arisen as indicators of my transition: Who am I? Who do I want
to be? Where do I want to go? More recently, however, one particular inquiry
has persistently nagged at me: What is happiness and how can I attain it?
Well ladies and gentlemen I am pleased to
introduce you to Gretchen Rubin, the spectacular, thought-provoking genius
behind The Happiness Project. The
moment I spotted her novel in “Barbara’s Bookshop” at the Chicago International
Airport, the only things standing between us were a couple of passerby’s and
the ten steps I had to walk to get to the bookshelf. Gretchen’s novel was like
a miraculous answer to my prayers—literally—and the first thing I did when I
began to read it was to take out a highlighter and a pen. I wrote in my brand
new novel, resolved to respect it by actively connecting with it.
Thus far, The Happiness Project has been a captivating read. As David
H. Pink states, it is “the rare book that will make you both smile and
think—often on the same page.” I couldn’t agree more. What Gretchen does in her
novel is truly inspired. It is not solely a chronicle of her quest to happiness
but rather an in-depth dissection of the concept of happiness and the ways in
which one should go about obtaining it. She investigates the basic science of
happiness and gradually builds a framework for achieving happiness through a unique
blend of research and personal reflection. Gretchen employs a humorous,
light-hearted tone that immediately draws the reader in due to the compelling
charm that radiates off each page of her book. Her novel is like an Eat.
Pray. Love for the average individual,
except it goes beyond storytelling. Gretchen delineates twelve specific realms
of her life that she seeks to improve in order to be not only happy but happier as an individual, a wife, and a
mother. As she educates herself on the art of happiness, she expounds on the
different domains of her life that could use some polish and gradually develops
into the architect of her own happiness.
The
Happiness Project is in a word beckoning. It coaxes you out of your comfort-zone and
inspires you to not only reexamine your life but to reexamine yourself in order
to reach your maximum level of happiness. Although the majority of us are under
the impression that we are happy, we fail to recognize that we may be cheating
ourselves in not working to be as happy as we could be.
For Gretchen this realization occurred when she felt something was missing in
her life. “I am in danger of wasting my life,” she said to herself. Presently,
I feel that something is missing in my life. So when I grabbed Gretchen’s novel
off the bookshelf, the first thought that crossed my mind, “This is my new
prescription.” I sought to observe myself, my surroundings, and my life through
a new lens. I wanted to figure out the root cause of my perpetual sense of
incompleteness and, more importantly, do something to fill that void.
And so I allowed Gretchen to lead the way. We
clicked instantly. As she spoke about perfecting her character, completing
to-do lists, learning new vocabulary terms, and reading on a whim I couldn’t
help but feel like someone out there was similar to me, understood me. The
starting point of her quest was not from without but from within, and I
appreciated this tremendously. Gretchen was not going to travel halfway across
the world to find happiness. She was going to start and finish at home, through
her inner self. “Look for happiness under your own roof,” she read in a fortune
cookie. Here was the foundation of her project—self-knowledge—and I discerned
it immediately.
The
Happiness Project walked into my life with impeccable timing. Just ten days ago I
turned in an English essay about the human quest to fulfillment and ten days
later, here was Gretchen Rubin’s novel to provide me with further insight into
happiness. Her story was linked to another book I recently read—Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. As Gretchen
experienced her epiphany, my thoughts drifted straight to Janie Crawford, the
protagonist in Hurston’s novel who goes on a journey to achieve harmony with
the universe. As I read The Happiness Project, I established
that happiness is in fact every human being’s fundamental end. We all seek it,
sometimes without even realizing it, and all of our actions are geared towards
it. Gretchen is one of those rare souls who succeeded in reaching happiness.
Today I have resolved to be one of those people.
So in conclusion, what is happiness? For me
happiness is contentment, satisfaction to the brim and beyond—the epitome of
mental, physical, and spiritual fulfillment. Ideas such as “achieving oneness
with the self” and “reaching harmony with the universe” are all concepts that I
have come across recurrently in my readings and today I identify them all with
the ideal of happiness. I have always been inspired by spiritual quests such as
those of Janie Crawford, the Buddha, and the Alchemist. Although they defined
happiness, however, they all failed to explain how I could reach it on my own. In The
Happiness Project, Gretchen
Rubin did precisely that. She opened for me the gateway to happiness that I have
been in pursuit of. More importantly, however, she guided me to take the first
step in my personal journey to redefine my life and to revitalize my very
being.
Self-improvement is now my prime motto.
-Sign MAPL∞
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