What is happiness? | Teen Ink

What is happiness?

December 6, 2009
By emmajumbilia SILVER, Bellingham, Washington
emmajumbilia SILVER, Bellingham, Washington
5 articles 8 photos 14 comments

Favorite Quote:
"As soon as you stop wanting something, you get it" - Andy Warhol


What is happiness anymore? We constantly are taking shortcuts in our lives, shortcuts even to happiness – we use instant gratification, consumption, and material goods to fill up that ache of emptiness. We constantly feel the need to feel full, to feel complete. But what defines completion? Is it when you have no more room for anything else, or that you have everything you need and no longer want anything else? I think that happiness is needed for this feeling of completion, but what is happiness? When we do find happiness, I think we hug onto it too tightly, and strangle it – we don’t let it be free, and open. We want to train happiness, make it do tricks for us and put it in a wire cage where we can poke wires into it and measure its heartbeat. But even then, we would still question it. We would still analyze every part of this happiness, until it no longer exists, and even our memories can barely grasp its reality. In today’s world, I wonder what happiness is. We grow up thinking that happiness is shopping or happiness is blissfully staring at a plasma television. But all of these things are material, they are artificial, and we have scammed ourselves into relying on them for ‘happiness’.
We create and consume so much that I believe we get so caught up in everything around us and forget what makes us really smile. Maybe it was when your friend accidentally tripped on her shoelace. Or maybe it was when you laughed so hard milk came out of your nose. We take so much for granted; and this leads to the oblivion I see so often around me. I feel so guilty sometimes for everything I have, all of my clothes and items. But I think that I can’t live without these things, but I know that in reality I could, that there are others out there who do live without these things. We are taught to live without our cell phones, without our ipods, we tell ourselves this so much that soon we believe it to be true. The more we consume, the more complicated things get, and the more troublesome our lives become. So how can we stop this monster we have created, and somehow achieve happiness along the way?


The author's comments:
Inspired by the rapidly increasing rate of instant gratification and reliance on material goods.

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This article has 4 comments.


400king BRONZE said...
on Dec. 23 2009 at 10:44 am
400king BRONZE, Hemet, California
1 article 0 photos 23 comments

Favorite Quote:
a poem is never finished, just abandoned

we are actually reading that right now in class, we just got done with the first chapter and i think it's insane haha.

on Dec. 22 2009 at 1:44 am
emmajumbilia SILVER, Bellingham, Washington
5 articles 8 photos 14 comments

Favorite Quote:
"As soon as you stop wanting something, you get it" - Andy Warhol

Thanks! :] i actually originally wrote this as a rant after reading 'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley - I definetely recommend reading it if you haven't already

400king BRONZE said...
on Dec. 21 2009 at 12:12 pm
400king BRONZE, Hemet, California
1 article 0 photos 23 comments

Favorite Quote:
a poem is never finished, just abandoned

wow, this is absolutely amazing. it perfectly sums up the world. Amanda helps too with the sterotype examples but this is exactly what people are today. I believe in our goals to achieve greatness and happiness we make ourselves miserable. Is it just me or aren't babies with absolutely nothing to worry about or responsibilites the happiest of all? Can people let it all go? The movie into the wild where "alexander supertramp" leaves society and just goes and along the way finds utter happiness. I'm not saying thats the goal to happiness but people are so obsessed with trying to be better or have more that we never realize how awesome we have it, we never take a look into another persons point of view and reflect on how we much better we have it and i think we should. oh well i guess i kinda got off topic a bit haha but i think this is really great. i have some poems that arennt published yet but when they are i think you would enjoy them so try checking them out, thanks and once again amazing article.

on Dec. 17 2009 at 2:22 pm
Hey ;) guess whooooo?!

I've always wondered if our lives have more potential when we're given more or given less.

Why does the stereotypical rich child end up bratty and selfish?

Why does the stereotypical poor child end up depressed and lonely?

I think happiness is something that can only be achieved by living life in moderation. Humans are about being extreme in one aspect in their lives or another, yes? And from my experience and observation, just one area of “exteme-ness” can easily send everything else out of whack (for example, too much sleep means less time for responsibilities that need tending).

But as all of us know… moderation is the hardest thing to keep up with. Maybe it’s just me being a pessimistic Capricorn, but I believe that happiness isn’t something we can keep a steady flow of without first keeping peace within our lives.