How much is your Happiness?

Have you heard the saying that, "you can't buy happiness"? Apparently, this is half true and half not. Literally, you can not purchase a dozen of happiness in the drugstore, or you can't ask a saleslady to give you 10ft of happiness if you go to the mall. But you can spend some money to make you feel happy.

As a child, I was always told that true happiness is not found in having plenty of dolls to play with or being able to scroll the mall every weekend, not even the numbers and glorious dresses I can wear. My parents told me that real happiness is found within us. As long as you know how to have contented, then you'll be happy always. This is what they imparted to me.

I don't rely my happiness on material things. I started to appreciate what my parents can give to me. I became content with what we have. And yes, I found happiness. But as I grow older, a realization came to me. Happiness is something within us. It is the feeling of being contented with what the things we own, we have. Appreciative of small things and just being grateful always. Also, happiness is having a good state of mind. Being able to go to sleep without worrying about what will happen tomorrow. Being able to eat healthy food at least three times a day. Living under a roof that is safe and warm. Happiness is having peace of mind too.

When adulting hit me, I realized that some happiness is costly. I was not born with a golden spoon, or even a silver one, in the mouth so my parents need to work very hard so we can eat three meals a day and we can go to school with a stomach full. I remember when I was still in high school, I really wanted to join in one of the events of school but it needs money to become a participant. Lucky for me that I have a generous teacher who shouldered the fees and let me pay them afterward.

Aside from being a social status, admit that having plenty of money can give you an edge in our society. You do not need to spend more time thinking at night where to get some peso so your family can eat the next day. You do not need to force yourself to go to work even if you aren't feeling well just because you're too afraid to lose your job. Your children can study in a decent and prominent school. No need to keep your illness a secret because you don't have money to pay the doctor and buy the medicines you need. These are just a few of the advantages of high-earners people.

Indeed, the love and respect of our family and loved ones can fill our sadness but not our children's stomachs. We can always get a hug and sweet kisses from our kids but those aren't enough to heal them once they got sick.

Don't get me wrong, I am not a materialistic type of girl. It is just this pandemic that made me realize that we may find happiness in material things too. How do you feel after sipping Starbucks Signature Hot Chocolate Venti that you are longing for? What did you feel when you saw your son excited to open the pack of bread you bought home for dinner? Aren't you happy?

Just think about it, if you have money, you can be in control of your life. You'll have many choices on how you want to live your life. Those high-earners people are likely to be more in control of their life compared to those who live paycheck to paycheck who might lose their job because of this pandemic. But that doesn't really mean that rich people are the happiest people on Earth. Sometimes those rich families have more issues than those unfortunate ones.

My Thoughts

Somehow you can see the relationship between having money and being happy. But you must consider that having too much has a bad effect, always.

All images are from Unsplash.