How to be happy: "You can eventually be happy"

The flower in the top image is the 'Great Burnet'.
Its flower language is 'passing days'.

By the way, for this title,
"You can eventually be happy"
which kanji did you imagine for 'nareru'?
To get used to (慣れる).

Or,
To become (成れる).
I chose this title with both meanings in mind.

Like the flower language of the Great Burnet,
days pass by.

In the midst of that, we
sometimes get used to happiness,

and sometimes we grow into happy people.
This is a story about thinking about such things.
♧♣︎

Humans are creatures that get used to things.

A new house, a new smartphone, a promotion,

the joy of getting what you wanted,

all eventually become part of daily life.
Happiness is the same.
Things that used to make us happy

become taken for granted before we know it.

Having a family.
Being healthy.

Having a job.
The food tasting good today.
Even though we should be happy enough,
once we get used to it, we stop seeing it.

♧♣︎
The other day, I was eating dinner with my children.

It was lively,

and we couldn't eat in peace.

Spilling tea,
asking for seconds,

suddenly starting a conversation about nothing.
It's the usual scene.
But, I suddenly thought.

What if I could never see this scene again?

I'm sure I would want to

not miss a single second.

And yet,
because it happens every day,

I tend to take it for granted.
I realize that I have gotten used to happiness.
The way to be happy

is not just to increase happiness.

It is to notice the happiness that is already there.
To take another look at the happiness

that has become taken for granted.
For that reason, I look at flowers,
read books,

and write these 'ways to be happy'.
It's like a confirmation process for myself.
♧♣︎

On the other hand,

humans are also creatures that become things.

People who look for gratitude
gradually become people who can feel gratitude.

People who look for interesting things
gradually become people who can find things interesting.

People who try to find happiness
gradually become people who can find happiness.

They weren't like that from the beginning.
The accumulation of daily life

gradually shapes a person.

♧♣︎
Since I started writing these 'ways to be happy',

I have become able to find small happiness.

Of course,
it doesn't mean that unpleasant things have disappeared.

I still have worries and failures.
Even so,
I feel like I am a little better

at finding happiness than my old self.
Little by little,
perhaps I am becoming that kind of person.

♧♣︎
The flower language of the Great Burnet is

'passing days'.

Days do not stop.
There are good days,

and there are days that are not.

In the midst of that, we
get used to happiness.

And at the same time,
we can also become happy people.

Both meanings of 'nareru' (to get used to/to become)
are within us.

So,
why not consciously look for happiness?

That today's meal was delicious.
That your family was healthy.

That you were able to read your favorite book.
That a flower was blooming.
To ensure that such small things
are not taken for granted.

In the passing days,
so that we don't get too used to happiness.

If you live like that,
I think that,

eventually, you will be able to be happy.

Books that influenced me in writing this article

"The Words of the Buddha" by Hajime Nakamura

Although these words are over two thousand years old, they are surprisingly applicable to us today.

What do people see, what do they cling to, and how do they live?

Reading it, I feel that happiness is not something far away, but something that appears or disappears depending on one's state of mind.

The self that gets used to happiness, and
the self that becomes a happy person.

It was a book that gave me the opportunity to think about both. Highly recommended.

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

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

Image source: Wikimedia Commons (Alpsdake, CC BY-SA 4.0)