🌈 "Universal Happiness": Happy people all say the same thing ✍️

I'm in my late thirties, and I suddenly thought that the more I aim for "happiness," the further away it seems to get.

To begin with, I'm gradually losing sight of what can even be called happiness.

Humans are greedy creatures; once we get what we were aiming for, we start wanting what's beyond that, don't we?

⭐️ What is ideal happiness?

When I was a child, I thought, "I'm definitely going to be rich!!"

That's what I thought.

Most children might think that is the pinnacle of happiness when they are young.

Eating as much of what you like, buying as many games as you like...

Children are cute precisely because they live according to their desires, but as a child, I seriously believed that if I had money, I could be happy.

Of course, it might be happier to have money than not to, but when I think about whether I'm happy now that I'm an adult, working, earning a lot, eating what I like, and buying the games I like, I find myself looking at happiness beyond that.

I bought the car I liked.
My love life with the person I liked went well.
I lived in a beautiful place.
I learned how to enjoy various things.

I might have tasted happiness in those moments.

However, as the days went by—a week, ten days, a month—the things I felt were happiness began to fade.

That is because I end up seeking the next happiness.

⭐️ Looking at SNS ⭐️

We now live in an era where there are many influencers.

People eating delicious food,
people who can go to Disneyland a lot,
people posting lovey-dovey photos as couples,

there are all sorts of things, aren't there!

Isn't it the case that the things you think look happy are just when you've gotten closer to what you admire??

I used to think that way too until recently.

I feel like I only used to post things on SNS back then that were half-boasts.

Maybe the happiness I was looking for was being envied by everyone!
That is what I was convinced of.

But, from the outside, that just makes you look happy and free of any worries, while in your heart, you might not actually feel happy at all.

I used to do YouTube with a friend, and there was a time when I naively thought, "It would be happy if we could just make a living off YouTube! It's easy, too!"
That was a time when I thought so easily.

We were able to monetize in three months, and reached our target subscriber count in half a year.
After a year, I started to feel that I was earning a decent amount, but there weren't many days when I felt happy.
And it wasn't easy either...

In the midst of all that, a single word from my grandmother completely changed my perspective on happiness!

⭐️My grandmother's values on happiness⭐️

My grandmother is 95 years old and still full of energy!

When I see other 95-year-olds on TV, my grandmother doesn't have a hunched back and has a plump figure, so I think the level of her vitality is just on a different level.

I once asked that grandmother of mine how to become happy.

At that time, I was busy with work, divorced, and even though I was earning a lot of money, I felt unhappy.

My grandmother says she is happy every day.

She said this to me.

"You lack gratitude!!"

Gratitude??
Does that have anything to do with happiness??

And my grandmother said,
"You earn a lot of money, have a prestigious position, and have gotten almost everything you wanted. But the reason you don't know happiness is because you aren't grateful for anything. First, start by being grateful that you are living in good health. Even if you don't feel it, it's important to start your day by saying thank you to your body for waking up and moving."

That's what she said.
By the way, my grandmother is mercilessly strict, even with her grandchildren.

Gratitude, huh...
I realized that no matter how much money you have, or how much food you have, it is all based on the premise of being healthy.

It's hard to be grateful for things that are taken for granted, but if you can truly be grateful for those things, you might indeed feel happy about everything.

Thinking this way, I am now living happily.

Also, an elderly neighbor I met recently said that being able to walk enough to go for a daily stroll and not getting sick is happiness.
That is what she said.

Perhaps true happiness begins with realizing that we are being kept alive in good health!!

In Tenrikyo, there is a teaching that says,
"Save others and you will be saved yourself."

Tenrikyo is a teaching that focuses on praying for the salvation of others rather than making requests for oneself.
(Personally, I really love this way of thinking.)

The fact that I am healthy now and able to move around every day without any inconvenience might be because my family or someone else is praying for me.

When you think about it that way, being healthy is the greatest happiness of all!

For those who feel unhappy right now, I recommend spending your days being grateful for the various things, people, and events happening around you!

A day where you feel truly happy will surely draw closer.

Once you are filled with the energy of happiness, even more happiness will come your way 🌼

Thank you for reading until the end.