Emily Smith Happiness

What Does It Take to Be Happy? Happiness is a vital key to a good life. One may go through life living with a mask to distract from the fact that he/she isn’t really happy. Some may never know what it’s really like to be happy. In Emily Smith’s work, “There’s More to Life than Being Happy” she states that being kind and giving leads to living a happier and better life. “My Heart Leaps Up” by William Wordsworth talks about how he enjoys the little things like seeing a rainbow. In Henry David Thoreau’s work, “Where I Lived and What I Lived for” he states that going out into nature rejuvenates you and really helps you escape the everyday struggles. In Carl Sandburg’s work “Happiness”, he states how he asked people what happiness was but

People can be “happy”, but are they really living a meaningful life? Smith states, “On top of that, the single-minded pursuit of happiness is ironically leaving people less happy, according to recent research” (Smith). In this statement she is explaining how being in the pursuit of happiness makes people less likely to be happy because they are searching for something they desire. Also, she states “Specifically, the researchers found that people who are happy tend to think that life is easy, they are in good physical health, and they are able to buy the things that they need and want” (Smith). Smith is stating that being happy ultimately leads to everyday things becoming much easier and overall satisfaction with life is increased. People can be happy, but they’re life may not be meaningful. Happiness is about the feeling of delight and joy. On the other hand, living with a meaning goes far beyond that. Living with a meaningful life gives a fuller and deeper appreciation for everything and helps grow gratitude. Thoreau talks about how going out into nature lets people not get thrown off by the obstacles and stress life throws at them. Thoreau states, “Let us spend one day as deliberately as Nature, and not be thrown off the track by every nutshell and mosquito’s wing that falls on the rails” (Thoreau). He is stating how we need to spend time with nature and not let life throw people off course, and we will be happy and find appreciation. He is also stating that all we need to be happy is to live without clutter and