What Makes You Happy?

My dad just read me parts of an article he gleaned from The Atlantic about a little-known 73-year-old survey of Harvard graduates called the Grant Survey. It had many purposes but what of its major tasks was to answer this question: What makes men happy? The survey followed a group of men from the late 1930s, through the war, and on to old age. The survey brought that question to the forefront of my mind: What makes you happy? What makes me happy? And...

Does what makes you HAPPY also make you HOLY?

Every human I know loves stuff. Some people love a lot of stuff, others a little, but we all cherish our possessions. I know that seeing my familiar possessions -- in my house, my car, my office, etc. sets my heart at ease. I like my stuff. I have way too much of it, maybe, but I like it. I tend to think I'd weep like a baby if I ever lost everything I had. All it takes is one little match, you know.

My stuff may make me comfortable but does it make me happy? In some ways, sure. Am I better off, spiritually, for having stuff or is my stuff neutral or negative to my spiritual life?

I know that I'm usually happy when I feel like I'm making a difference, either in someone's life or in the life of an organization. I'm most frustrated and unhappy when I feel useless to someone or something.

I'm happy when I'm not stressed for time. When I can take off on a Sunday drive and not care about getting back before dark or getting to bed early. When I can feel relaxed and not under deadline pressure. I'm most unhappy when I miss a sunset because I was frantically working indoors so I could go home.

I'm happy when I explore new places and meet new people. I love to travel. And I love to move. No, not the physical exertion of moving but the excitement of going someplace new and learning the streets and stores. I'm most unhappy when I feel stuck in one place for too long. How long is too long depends on the place and circumstance.

I'm happy when I can laugh freely and often. When I can learn something new. When I can play my guitar late at night by the fireside and enjoy creating new sounds (new to me) and remember old melodies. When I see an awesome movie. When I give gifts at Christmas.

Enough about me. What makes you happy?

I'm not asking, I'm just asking. :-)

Be God's!