Everyone wants to be happy. That is plain and simple. But the question is how can we be truly happy, or what can make us really happy? When we say these, we mean neither happiness that is superficial nor extra ordinary to the extent of blissful ecstasy. We simply mean happiness that is practically and literally realizable in our ordinary day-to-day life. The following are 6 practical means of achieving true happiness.
Maintain a healthy body
One thing we learned from kindergarten or elementary perhaps many years ago is the cliché “Health is Wealth”. This is no truer than today. Nothing can replace the joy and peace of being free from physical ailments, or at least from its worst kinds. If there could be time when we need to be more careful with our health, it would surely be at present. It is in this particular situation when pollution of almost all phases of our environment is prevalent that we should take extra care of ourselves. But in order to do that, we have to learn to eat healthy food, have enough time for sleep and rest, and keep a regular exercise regimen.
Find humor everywhere
There is a lot of joy we can get from lightheartedness than from so much seriousness. Of course we do not mean to encourage downright mediocrity. What we just want to emphasize is the levity of being down-to-earth. That is keeping oneself rooted to the ground. Take time to laugh when there is a healthy occasion for it. Keep a smile to yourself and share it with others. Humor is something we do not buy. It is something within us and in almost every ordinary situation. What we just need is to be appreciative and open-minded. Laughter heals most of our pains and makes our burdens lighter. Studies even show that it delays the natural process of aging.
Learn from failures
Life without failures is impossible, or at least bare of meaning. As limited creatures it is our nature to commit honest mistakes and to fall to human errors. Inability or refusal to accept their reality in our lives will be our greatest mistake or our biggest failure. In the first place, denying them will just be like hating our own shadow. Thus we must take our limitations squarely. Failure can only be the bitterest if we know that we did not do our best. But if it comes after we have dome all that we can to avoid it, then it is something beyond us anymore. Thus, pains and shortcomings should not be allowed to hinder us from growing. On the contrary, they must be opportunities for us to be better persons.
Share success with others
In celebrating success we usually throw out a party or give a “blow-out”. But in a much deeper sense, sharing our blessings with other people maximizes the fulfillment we gain. A lot of persons in history fought hardly their way to the top, even to the point of pulling others ahead of them or stepping on another's shoulder, only to find themselves alone at the zenith and suffer utter loneliness. Allowing other people to benefit from our personal success makes us winners - many times over.
Have the best pillow in the world - clear conscience
“Mens sano in corpore sana” - sound mind in a sound body. Being totally healthy involves not only the body. It also includes a healthy psyche - that is, having a mind free of unhealthy baggages. Free of guilt feelings, anxieties as well as all unnecessary fears and worries. Let us have the best pillow in the world, guaranteed to give us the most comfortable sleep far greater than what the luxury suite of a seven star hotel can offer. It is no other than, knowing we have not committed any form of injustice to ourselves or to others and not having hurt someone else.
Keep oneself connected to the source
God is the source of all authentic happiness. He alone can give the joy which material things in this world can not. Therefore, keeping ourselves attuned to Him through constant prayer and following his precepts give us lasting happiness. It is interesting to note that researches showed among others, that people or at least those who adhere to any form of religion are found to have longer lives, strong support system through their pastors or congregations, and stronger capability to face all forms of difficulty.
Happiness is not elusive, neither it is expensive. In fact, it can be our own making.
