By Kollarou Dimitra (A Class)

Being happy is nothing but a state of mind. Everyone is seeking happiness. But where can it be found? Is there a map?

If there has been one time in my life when I truly felt happy and complete, I think it was last year. It was a hot, mid-August, summer night, so my friend Caroline and I decided to take a walk on the beach. After looking at the ocean for a while we decided to lie down and gaze at the stars. For a moment there I closed my eyes and carefully listened to the waves crashing onto the shore. The feeling I got when I opened my eyes…. was “happiness”. That simple – yet magical – moment was my moment of happiness. Nature made me happy with its simple and yet magical beauty. The combination of the ocean, the stars and the moon was so ordinary and unique at the same time. Such a paradox I thought at the time.

Many people associate the feeling of happiness with possessions and money. Well, definitely having some money contributes to a feeling of happiness, but real happiness is not hidden in material things but in moments shared with our beloved ones. Giving and sharing is another way which might lead someone to be happy because it has been scientifically proved that, when we give and we make other people happy, we ourselves become happier! For me, the most important thing to understand in order to feel happy is to feel gratitude. Every single one of us should start appreciating what we have: simple things, nature, food, water. People should stop chasing something bigger and start feeling thankful for what they already have. That is why, in my opinion, the pursuit of happiness is pointless. Happiness is going to come to every single one of us if we stop chasing it. We need to stop and catch our breath for a moment and thank ourselves for where we have arrived and then thank nature for all it has offered us.

Happiness is like love, it comes whenever you are ready to receive it. It is out there in the simplicity and at the same time complexity of nature. Happiness is out there in nature as Oscar Wild said: ‘’ with the moon, the stars and a book who couldn’t be happy?‘’

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There is a very interesting talk of Michael Norton, a Social science researcher, about how money actually CAN bring happiness. Read it at: https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_norton_how_to_buy_happiness#