What is Happiness?

Bath Tub Thoughts

What do you do in your bathtub? I take showers each morning, but sometimes when I really need some "me" time. I find solace in a bathroom with the door locked and a tub full of suds.

Generally I will do this to read whatever my favorite book is that I am engrossed in at the time. I’ll touch on my most recent favorite reads in a bit.

Tonight is a first. I’m actually writing my next entry for my blog…in the bathtub. No interruptions as of yet! Knock on Wood!!

Hmmm…I think I should shave my legs while I’m in here. Kill 2 birds with one stone! Right? It’s so much easier to shave your legs in the bathtub than while you’re showering. Especially first thing in the morning when your equilibrium is off anyway. You know what I mean, ladies?

Anyway, I’ve had several thoughts over the past couple of days of what to blog about. I had the best idea yet while taking a smoke break in my car at the office today. Of course that was around 10:00 a.m. Naturally my thoughts change constantly throughout the day and boy what a day it has been! It’s been super busy lately. Well, every day is busy, but at this time of year in my industry, it’s exceptionally busy.

After debating with myself, I’ve chosen to write about happiness. This was not even CLOSE to my other ideas, but after the day I’ve had, I feel the need to write about it.

What is happiness?
Webster’s Dictionaries definition of happiness is as follows:
happiness
noun 1. state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy [ant: unhappiness] 2. emotions experienced when in a state of well-being [ant: sadness]

Contentment to intense joy….Today I have experienced an intense joy. No, it was not because I was skipping down the hall today and ran into a wall (true story…most humiliating and I really was not skipping but the witness to this embarrassing incident of the wall meeting my body said I was.) And perhaps I was skipping. I did not think I was. I thought I was merely light on my feet or floating down the hallway. I felt exuberant! Till of course I ran into the wall, then I lost it and laughed for close to 5 minutes as my coworker told everyone we passed.

What do you do when you experience intense joy? Obviously most of you do not run into walls like I do. And how about contentment? I do not picture contentment as a meaning of happiness. I think of contentment as so-so. You’re not happy, nor are you sad. You merely exist in your world. You’re comfortable, safe.

I do not want to have that kind of happiness. I want the happiness that makes me feel like I can do anything! The type of happiness that inspires creativity! The kind that raises your endorphins where everyone can see this light beaming from you by the way you carry yourself, the expression on your face or if you’re on the phone, the way your voice sounds. While emailing, you may use a smiley face to show how you feel. You don’t do these things when you’re merely content. I feel like writing Webster’s and demanding that they change the definition of happiness! People overwhelmed with elation, euphoria and a supreme sense of well being is what happiness is all about, not humdrum contentment.

I experienced a true sense of happiness reading the last 2 novels I read over the past 3 weeks. They are both by Karen Kingsbury. The first is One Tuesday Morning and the sequel is Beyond Tuesday Morning. They were both inspired by the World Trade Center attacks. I cannot tell you how many times I cried throughout each of these books. Karen Kingsbury watched the tragedy of that day unfold on television. During that awful day, she immediately thought of the story for her first book. Exploring the way so many people felt while they were in those towers. The way the firefighters heroically marched up those stairs in the South Tower while the building was shaking knowing that they were literally walking into a death trap. She walks you through 2 families lives that were shattered by this awful tragedy and the good things that came out of it. They are both amazing reads and I highly highly recommend reading both of them. Trust me, you will not want to put them down!