Happiness

Therapist: Are you happy, Scott?
Me: Define "happy."
Therapist: How do you come up with questions like that, Scott?
Me: That's just the way my mind works, there should be signs that say "do not walk on the grass, stay on the main path!"

It's possible that my mind just made up part or all of that conversation. Are you sure you want to be here? Pull the harness all the way over until it locks in position and fasten the seat belt.

So what is happiness? How do you know if you're happy? These are real questions that I threw up into my head to digest. Yes, I just said 'threw up' in order to digest... don't say I didn't warn you!

Analogy (I realized I was an 'example' learner, so I go to my analogy place for comfort): a man has reached into his pocket and finds $100 bill. That would make many people 'happy' (except for those of us who would have to angst over how it got there, but I digress). You're imagining what you could spend old Ben Franklin on right now...some new gadget maybe? possibly taking your sigo (significant other) on a date? Starbucks for a week?
Same man gets to his office in time to hear another man (or woman, for all of you "branders" out there) describe finding $1000 in his suit jacket the same morning. Is the first man AS happy as he was earlier or has his happiness been slimmed down a bit?

Sure, we can go all 'don't look a gift horse in the mouth' or 'glass is half full' but is happiness based on a "feeling" or on some relativity scale?

I 'feel' like I am happy, but is that because I've never truly been happy enough to have a good comparison? Didn't you think you were in love with someone before, only to find out it wasn't 'really' love?

Are tears of happiness an indicator? A swell of pride? A contented feeling? I need to know.

How about opposites? Sadness is generally considered by most grade schoolers to be the opposite of Happiness. So if I am not sad, does that mean I am happy? Is there a scale of -10 to 10? I suppose you could say that I only thought I was sad when my grandmother died, but like the guy who found out he ONLY found $100, I haven't experienced the death of my parents, spouse, or God forbid, my kids?

So blissfully ignorant of the discovery of $1000 in my suit jacket or the death of 1000 grandmothers, I will pronounce myself happy...and somehow that makes me happier.

Yes, you may begin to pity my beautiful wife.