Child blowing dandelion in a field of flowers at sunset.
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I’m Replacing Happiness With Gratitude

For me, “I wouldn’t have it any other way” is the new “I’m happy.”

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What is happiness? Is it glee? Or contentment? The older I get, the more I appreciate the nuances of personal satisfaction, and how much is involved in enjoying life.

Happiness is deceptively simple. In children, happiness is carefree. It’s “having fun.” Happiness is laughter and smiles. Once you grow up, however, you realize how much goes into those carefree moments. Happiness in children requires security. It means feeling safe, being loved and cared for.

Happiness is harder to come by when someone — be they child or adult — is under stress, hungry, or in pain. Even relatively small things like getting a good night’s sleep can affect how open you are to enjoying life’s pleasures.

All this may seem obvious, but I had a revelation about happiness while sitting on the porch with my husband on our anniversary this past weekend. Our new baby was sleeping in my arms, and we watched our toddler running in the yard. We were, and are, exhausted.

As we sat, my husband asked me if I was happy. I smiled and hugged our baby a little closer. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” I answered.

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Edie Meade
Edie Meade

Written by Edie Meade

A compassionate and opinionated human being. | Fiction author and visual artist in Central Appalachia. | Give my newsletter a try: https://bit.ly/2sZGM6n

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