Happiness Is

There is this funny story about a Volkswagen owner and a Rolls Royce owner.  One day, while stopped at a red light signal the owner of a Volkswagen had a short talk with the Rolls Royce owner.  Here’s their small chat:

VO: "Hey, you got a phone in that Rolls?"
RRO: "Yes, of course I do."
VO: "I got one too... see?"
RRO:"Uh, huh, yes, that's very nice."
VO: "You got a GPS?"
RRO:"Why, actually, yes, I do."
VO: "I do too! See? It’s right here!"

The light is just about to turn green and the guy in the Volkswagen says, "So, do you have a double bed in there?" The guy in the Rolls replies, "NO! Do you?" "Yep, got my double bed right in back here," replied the Volkswagen owner.

The light turns and the man in the Volkswagen takes off.  The Rolls owner is not about to be beaten.  He immediately goes to a customizing shop and orders them to put a double bed in back of his car. As soon as the job was done, he picks up his car and drives all over town looking for the Volkswagen. He finally finds it parked alongside the road, so he pulls his Rolls up next to it.

The windows on the Volkswagen are all fogged up; though feeling a bit awkward the Rolls owner gets out of his newly modified Rolls and taps on the foggy window of the Volkswagen. The Volkswagen owner opens the window a crack and peeks out.

Rolls owner: "Hey, remember me?"
Volks owner: "Yeah, yeah, I remember you. What's up?"
Rolls owner: "Check this out! I got a double bed installed in my Rolls."
Volks owner: YOU GOT ME OUT OF THE SHOWER TO TELL ME THAT?

What is happiness? Is it being ahead of everybody? Is happiness the purpose of life? I would say it is. No one wants to live miserably. But what would make you happy?

In our daily life we constantly experience happiness and sadness, but we are still quite ignorant as to what happiness really is. We think happiness is about being wealthy, pretty, having a successful career or business or being married.

I remember one of our pastors crack a joke while delivering a Sunday message.  He motioned to the singles and asked them if they would be happy to be “double” or married.  He said, “Don’t answer… ask the married people here if they are happy.”

We had a good laugh!

Happiness does not simply come from being wealthy, having a formal education, being physically attractive, having a successful career or even being married.  Happiness begins with having the strength to confront and conquer one’s own weaknesses. Only then does it become possible to lead a truly happy life.  Happiness exists in the present as we face the challenges of daily life. Happiness exists when we are able to face life and its challenges with the right perspective.

A man who has great wealth, social recognition and many awards may still be shadowed by indescribable suffering deep in his heart. He may still feel discontentment like the Rolls Royce owner who resists being outdone by the Volkswagen owner. On the other hand, an elderly woman who is not financially well-off and is just living a simple life alone may feel the sun of joy and happiness rising in her heart each day.

Happiness is in you.