“If we only wanted to be happy, it would be easy; but we want to be happier than other people, and that is almost always difficult, since we think them happier than they are.”

– Charles de Montesquieu

From “the grass is always greener” to “no one knows what goes on behind closed doors,” I must say that Montesquieu hits the nail right on the head.  Why is it that we need to look outside of ourselves for comparison in order to feel happy?  True happiness is not something that is dependent on external happenings.  It is not something we possess or don’t possess due to comparison with the success or happiness of others.  True happiness is something that we cultivate within our own hearts and bring to the happenings that compose our life.

The question that arises is this:  When we allow our happiness to be dependent on other people or events, are we really talking about happiness at all?  Needing to be happier than other people in order to consider ourselves happy sounds more like greed than happiness.  When we see the grass as always greener on our neighbor’s side of the fence, we fall victim to envy — funny that it should be called the green-eyed monster.  When we look for happiness outside of ourselves, we are at the mercy of the color palette of others.  We allow them to decide how we will see ourselves — in full color, or in shades of green.  When our happiness dwells within us, we bring color to the world.  It is only when we are content within ourselves that we are able to share the happiness of another person’s good fortune.

The way to cultivate happiness is to cultivate gratitude.  Being thankful for the small things that make us comfortable and content unlocks and reveals our true happiness.  When it is present and we see the happiness of another person, the shared feeling grows and becomes love that colors the world around us in a beautiful way.  It should be our intention to cultivate true and abiding happiness.  What sort of color do you want to bring to the world around you?  There is no need to complicate happiness.  When we open our hearts to gratitude, the seeds of happiness will take root and grow.  It is then that our happiness will overflow and bring beauty to our world.