What Makes You Happy?

“Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love and something to hope for.” Joseph Addison

What is it that really makes you happy? Not just OK, really properly happy? My husband Steve is spending 10 days walking in the Pyrenees mountains in France at the moment. He spends 7 hours a day walking up a mountain and then down again. That’s his 40th birthday present. It makes me tired just thinking about it. It makes him really happy.

Last week I had lunch with a friend. She is at that point where her job is getting her down, she’s tired and doesn’t know what to do next. I expected to pray for her, find some words of advice that would help her find a solution to her problems, to encourage her. Instead we spent most of the two hours we had together laughing. We laughed at life in general, we laughed at our lives, we laughed at each other. We both felt like we had been inside a rainbow or under a waterfall. It felt good.

So today I have decided to write down 5 things that make me happy. You can write your own 5 if you like.

1. Being on the beach when the sand is warm between my toes and my kids are jumping down the sand dunes.

2. Talking to my husband Steve late at night when he is sleepy and I always seem to get my best thoughts.

3. Reading cookbooks in bed, especially ones with pictures and cake recipes.

4. Being in an ancient church with the peace and stillness of God and the smell of old oak.

5. Catching up with people I love and haven’t talked too in a while, especially over really good coffee.

Joy does us good. The Bible says that the joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8 v10). Jesus was often found with friends, in people’s houses, sharing lives and food. Joy helps us maintain a heavenly perspective on our earthly lives. Sometimes it’s good to forget, let it go, be kind to yourself, do something you like.

‘A sense of humor… is needed armor. Joy in one’s heart and some laughter on one’s lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life.’ Hugh Sidey, long-term White House correspondent, journalist for Time magazine

Have a GOOOOD day:)