How to be happy: 'Giving back'

When spring arrives,
dogwood flowers bloom in the soft light.
Their flower language is 'requital'.

The way they bloom as if to gently respond
to the kindness received from someone
reminds us of the warm relationships between people.

In our daily lives, too,
there are many small 'receipts'.

And how we respond to each one of them
greatly influences our daily happiness.

Noticing that you are receiving

When you hear the word 'giving back',
you might feel like you have to do
something special.

However, what is important before that
is to realize that you have already
received something.

・Casual greetings
・Small acts of consideration
・The environment someone has prepared for you

These are all things that are easy to overlook,
but there is certainly 'something given' there.

If you don't feel like you are receiving anything,
giving back will feel like an obligation.

First, turn your eyes
to the small gifts in your daily life.
That is the beginning of a natural way of giving back.

Don't try to give back too much

Giving back means you have to return the same amount,
or even more.
If you think that way,
it immediately becomes a burden.

But in reality,
just a single word of 'thank you' or
a small act of caring for the other person is enough.

In fact, if you try to force yourself to give back too much,
it will become a burden somewhere,
or you might start expecting something in return.

It is much more comfortable to think of giving back
as a 'circulation' rather than a 'balance'.

Giving back fulfills you

Strangely enough, when you try to give something back to someone,
it is often you who feels fulfilled.

When you express gratitude,
or when you are able to be a little considerate of the other person,
a quiet satisfaction spreads within your heart.

This is a feeling that cannot be obtained with money or things.

It can be called a certain 'richness'
that is only born through connections with people.

Creating a relationship that keeps circulating

Giving back does not end with a one-time interaction.

The kindness you returned to someone
might come back to you in another form,
or it might spread to someone else.

In this way, although invisible,
a warm circulation is certainly created.

Just as dogwood trees bloom every year,
relationships with people are also things that grow repeatedly.

Conclusion

Giving back is not a special act.

It is about noticing what you have already received,
and responding within your means, without strain.

The accumulation of that
creates a gentle flow in your daily life.

Like the dogwood's flower language of 'requital',
pass on what you have received to someone else.

I believe that within that circulation,
a calm happiness grows.

Books that influenced me in writing this article

GIVE & TAKE: A Revolutionary Approach to Success

People are not satisfied just by receiving.
By giving, returning, and circulating,
relationships become warmer.
These are the books that influenced that perspective.

I have also summarized other 'ways to be happy' flowers
at the link below.
Please take as much as you need🍀

Thank you for reading until the end.
I hope to see you in another article.
🍀May you be happy🍀