Let us start by saying that “happiness” is a word we have to understand without setting the definite article that every noun gets before it.  Maybe that is even the reason why we don´t.  The English language usually doesn´t set this word before words that are abstract; like joy, peace, anger, hope, etc. (others, like Spanish, German and French do). Yet, even though it may seem outrageous, I dare to say that in order to understand what this article is about it is necessary to apply the definite article and the plural.  Why?  Because happiness is subject to many things; it is also changing; it is variable in intensity, frequency, size and form, but it is always  “happiness”.

Let us continue understanding that happiness is not an article, it isn´t an object, it is not a thing that we can use as we please, but a gift that gets to us as a result.  Result of what?  Of our faithfulness.  Each time that we are faithful we have proven ourselves worthy of happiness, and we have to “take” our reward.  Happiness is our prize and we should not ignore it, nor should we throw it away.

The God who governs all has established laws that work. He has determined rules that nobody and nothing can change. And happiness is one of them. We are not talking about feeling happy, we are talking about being happy and being really happy.  We are talking about a happiness that is rightful, that has been granted to us by the living God who will receive us in eternity, where there shall be no more circumstantial happiness, but a constant, lasting, eternal one.

The first one we get to know is the one that earthly goods grant us. We are happy because we have possessions that allow us to have comfort, health, possibilities. This happiness is a gift that invites us to open up to the giver and to learn to love Him, and not only enjoy the gifts.  This happiness isn´t endless.  Somehow it makes us debtors, and it is that happiness that sets a limit  between that which is licit and that which isn´t.  As children all we have to do is receive it and thank it.  But, as adults we start using our will, something children aren´t responsible for.

Our licit happiness starts by making peace with our Creator, acknowledging every good and beautiful thing we have, close and far, inside and outside.  Our first possession, the more valuable and big one is ourselves.  Every happiness has to part from here, for it not to turn into sadness afterwards.  When we possess ourselves we can´t have losses.

Circumstances may be sad, hard, painful, boring, dramatic, tragic, yet happiness IS.  It is not something that belongs to the past, it is a reality that makes me who I am and it goes with me through good and evil. It is a value that does not depreciate, it remains and grows, but it never decreases, because it is licit and as pure and strong as gold.

My happiness comes to be a possession.  It is the medicine in my pharmaceutical kit that will soothe my pain in times of weakness.  It is the song that feeds my subconscious when my conscious  has to face adversity.  It is the strength I need to stand the injustice I have to face every now and then.  It is a firm promise to get out of undesirable times that I have to face as a human being, in order to deserve an eternal prize.  It is my reason to continue, to resist temptations, to persevere and not give in, to conquer, to get up once more and once again.  It is consolation to endure times of sadness, for it brings hope;  I´ve had happiness before and I can have it again, I know it and I know that I shall enjoy it again.

Thus, this happiness begins in ourselves; not in what we have but in who we are.  We acknowledge every good thing the Creator has granted us, we embrace it and cherish it.  Our life is meant to be a song, music.  What we do, what we seek, what we touch, what we enjoy, will write the song.  Each time we notice a noise, a bother, fatigue, unrest, discomfort, discordance, we have to stop and analyze what´s going on; to find out where the problem is.  Life should be a party in which we are the hosts and, also,  one who enjoys it fully.   

If we don´t possess ourselves, we cannot be happy; it is like wanting to build a house in the air.  If there is no water, there is nothing we can do with the boat. First we have to possess our territory to build on it later. We have to discover ourselves, understand ourselves, define our identity and, finally, adapt to the outer world.  Yet, being zealous of our personal happiness, always. This right way of thinking will prevent us from falling under manipulations, temptations, threats or other similar ones of selfish ones, who are determined to achieve their goals and see us as tools or useful instruments to accomplish it.  We don´t have to go astray from the road of life.  We have to anchor our boat correctly to all the laws that will protect us from the turbulence of the waters.  And, when we venture into new and unknown territories, we have to believe in our compass: principles, values, integrity and faithfulness, which will prevent us from getting lost, and will always add more happiness to our lives. 

We have to be careful not to mix up “more happiness” with “greater happiness”.  As we already explained, events are changing, and no matter how intense they are, how long they last or the size they have, each and every one of them belongs in the trunk of happiness we are filling.

We have to have such a trunk for our treasures, where we will keep all the precious things life will give us; and we will be able to take from it in times of adversity, when happiness seems to have left us alone.  Memories will give us strength, and happiness will come back to us as a faithful partner that leaves us only because it is completely necessary.  These are times to meditate, to redefine our foundation, to contemplate our lives, and cherish - in the depths of our souls - everything that life may have granted us;  times to examine ourselves.

We have to live each moment, each experience, each opportunity, knowing that each one of them is unique.  Nobody knows with certainty what tomorrow may bring, but nobody should doubt what they´ve got here and now.  Let us, therefore, see life with objectivity, allowing ourselves to dive deeply, as much as we like, in each experience, because it is here, now, for us.  And that is what will increase the content in our sack of values, along our walk in this world.

Let us not make things smaller.  Let us not make things bigger.  Let us remember each thing for what each thing is; and not allow desires, nor thoughts affected by unreal longings, nor fears or comparisons to alter our perception of each event;  for our perception of them  is meant to be honest and truthful.  Let us enjoy each of them intensely, for what each one of them is; big or small, each generates a sensation that is unique and will not repeat itself.  Maintaining the right perspective will make out of any happy event something marvelous, for it is unique, no matter its actual size, duration, taste or intensity.  Let us respect the truth in order not to cheapen the present.  Let us give each experience its right value, and treasure it as such.  Only this way will we avoid getting lost in that which isn´t ours, nor in that which is gone, past or inexistent, because we have embraced our here and now with gladness and liberty!  Let us beware of comparing one sensation of happiness with another, for this is corruption.

Let us not lead our lives with a  divided heart, let us not leave any unconcluded cycles, let us live neither with doubts nor with fears, let us not live in acceleration nor in passivity;  let us live with consciousness, with liberty, with faith, with excitement, with diligence, with responsibility, with faithfulness, with longings, with dreams, with hope, … let us be ourselves and know that, in order to see what there is around us, we need to open our eyes;  to touch we have to stretch our arms;  to keep something we have to take care of it;  to enjoy something we have to feel it and cherish it;  and, in order not to lose it, we have to make the moment eternal through awareness and memory.

Happiness isn´t on a shelf at the store; happiness is “being willing to” and “being able to” recognize the beauty, the blessing, the good, in everything that does me good, and, thus, grants happiness to me.  It may be found in a plant, or in some food; in an moment, in a sunrise, even in something that didn´t work out; in an illness, in an accident, in an acquisition, an achievement, … Let us open up to the idea of grabbing happiness!  Let us see it coming!  Let us believe in what our hearts tell us, in that which our minds imagine, and let us take a hold of it, with everything necessary not to hurt it:  prudence, patience, strength, thoughtfulness, speed, gladness, enthusiasm, creativity, diligence, faithfulness, warmth, cold, seriousness, song, emotion, silence, …

Happiness may come to us as a divine gift, as it happens when we are happy with our families, our race,  our nationality, our circumstances, our body, hair or face … but there are other “happinesses” that depend on us.  We have to look for them.  We have to believe.  We have to activate ourselves.  We have to get prepared to recognize the opportunities; and we have to be quick, for them not to pass us by and allow others to take away what could have been ours.

There are sad things in life, and one among them is to have to say “if I … “  in Past Tense.  It is very sad to look back and understand that, IF we had done things in a different way, we would have found happiness that will never be ours because our opportunity remains in the past.  Still, we have the present and the future.  May this grammatical conjunction not be reason for our sadness!  May our vocabulary contain the perfect past, that celebrates what was done, what was achieved, what happened, what we did try to do, … happiness does not lie in achievements, but in attitudes.  No matter the results in the material, physical world, that which will grant me happiness is knowing that I DID what I could, what I should have; like a doctor who couldn´t save the patient, but did everything he could.  This doctor has a right to happiness, unlike the one who stopped before he did everything he could have done.

There is a place for each thing in life.  As a right time.  We have to learn to respect the laws of life, with humility and faithfulness, using them in our favor and making a compromise with life, with love, with happiness: giving and receiving; knowing that by respecting those laws we are assuring our own good. 

The happiness that any human being can feel is a response of the brain to a physical, material perception.  This is not that happiness that God grants us.  It is passing, superficial, external, circumstantial; it may last a lot or be short.  This leaves us in danger of unexpected unhappiness, because of the loss.  We may fall in a cycle of destruction, tied to an addiction to objective happiness, instead of having the source, the assurance, the guarantee, the firm hope, the wheel that directs our ship that cannot get lost in the greatness of the sea nor sink.  Worldly happiness is a hallucination, a deceiving sensation, a perverse trap, a danger that has to be recognized and avoided.

That first happiness we mentioned, granted to us by grace, is the beginning of a path full of options that demand our awareness, gratitude and participation.  Love is that which grants us all the good things there are, and, also, eyes that watch over us to make sure that we are giving, as we have received; to maintain over us the rain of blessing, the provision of good, the goodness that´s already been granted to us.  The line between the licit and the illicit has to get lost, for us to choose the side of the licit things; and remain there forever. As long as we see the illicit side, we either fear or are attracted to it.  Only when we decide to be on the licit side, the only thing that will be missing shall be to constantly see to it that we remain faithful to be worthy of staying there forever.

So, we should not talk about “the happiness”, which is the one that any fool can feel at one time or the other, and may even become his constant state of mind, but we should think in terms of “our happiness”, “my happiness”, “a happiness”, “this happiness”, “the happiness that you give me”, “happy experiences”, … and know that we exceed any illicit happiness, because of the truth in our perception, attitude and reality.  We are going to be happy, even though we may not sense happiness (feel happy) at various stages in our lives, due to the challenges we have to face, to the seriousness or tension of circumstances, to things beyond our control, our will or ability.

Thus, we ought to understand, too, that many persons may have a lot more happy moments than others, because of their areas of function, of their activities, which are less demanding: supervised, directed or developed.  Those who have under their responsibility tasks that are much more difficult, serious, hard and/or dangerous will have less such happy moments. This doesn´t have to confuse us:  According to our ability, the “happinesses” we will enjoy will be more or less frequent or intense. We don´t have to be envious, nor perturbed about this.  We just have to be realistic, and sure about not exaggerating our perception of reality, or handling more than what we can, or failing in using our right to take the happiness we deserve; we have to be sure not to allow others to abuse us, nor to commit injustice against us, nor deny us that which is rightfully ours. 

“If we are to be defeated during life´s … pilgrimage,

 it is likely that negative emotions will play a dominant role in that discouragement.”                                                    

Dr. James Dobson (“Emotions, can you trust them?”)

The only circumstance that annuls our happiness and brings anger to our lives is injustice. When we notice this, we have to act, and we don´t have to allow time to go by without doing anything at all about it.  We can´t be indifferent.  We have to do whatever is necessary to end this circumstance.  If we allow it, we are not suffering injustice; we have been victims of our own lack of character. Every kind of injustice creates an environment of violence, therefore, we need prudence; we may also need external intervention, thus, we will need to talk, to testify, to ask for help; we will need back up, justice.  Let us do it!  Victory will be one more reason to celebrate the happiness resulting from having conquered evil, instead of having been conquered by it.

If injustice prevails in a certain situation, circumstantial happiness will be impossible.  The prior happiness still remains - for we carry it inside of us like an indestructible treasure -, and hope, prayer (to ask from God and expect vindication) and contentment.

Love is strength that is above all.  If we achieve to hold on to the love that we have already received and the one that lives inside of us, in the midst of unfair circumstances, we will find joy and peace in having found our identity.

Let us not get discouraged, because we aren´t laughing all the time.  Life is a field to be planted, and that chance to plant is a reason to be glad; for the harvest for our faithfulness is eternal.  No matter how many tears we shed on Earth, or the pain we have to endure, the sufferings that encounter us, nor how hard or difficult our lives may be, we have to have a stock that is inaccessible, where we keep each happiness that may have been part of our lives;  thus, we can make a balance of faith: standing that which is painful, gathering everything that is happy. We ought to celebrate love each day, in good and bad times, knowing that there is always a sun coming out after the storm.  The colors of the rainbow are the promise that grey will not stay covering our heads forever, but that something that causes us to find an internal sun that will always shine brighter. We shouldn´t be looking at ourselves as a light that fades away with the passing of time, and ends up being a weak candle that threatens to extinguish.

Maturity is that which grants us to enjoy life independently from circumstances, for its happiness doesn´t lie in them, but in counting and gathering everything that has already been lived, knowing that there’re will always be more, and that the best awaits us in eternity.  Maturity is not to set our eyes on the external, but on what we are, and face everything with faithfulness.  It is, knowing that

 what we have to rescue is   

   our right to be happy!

Song:  "Heal the world" (M. Jackson);  "All I need"  (Jack Wagner); "Every woman in theworld" (Air Supply); "Somewhere after the rainbow" (Bob Marely); "Little Jeannie" E. John

Recommendations (Movies):

"A Song from the Heart" (Amy Grant) 

"Breakpoint" (Luke Bracey) 

"Cinderella" (W. Disney) 

"Flicka 3" (Kacey Rohl) 

"The Best of Me" (James Marsden) - omit sex scenes - 

"The Game Plan" (Dwayne Johnson) 

"The little Mermaid" (W. Disney) 

"Titanic 1" (L. DiCaprio)
              "Fallen Angel" (G. Sinise & J. Richardson)