Is Happiness Free?

They say, money cannot buy happiness. And I believe this for the longest time. I thought this is correct. We cannot buy happiness. Because for me, simple things like being with family needs no money.

But recently, this realization was changed. Actually, money can buy happiness. And I know you all agree.

For example, I love traveling. I need money to purchase me plane tickets, to book hotel accommodation, and to buy delicious food. Without money, I cannot fly and go to other places. We cannot ask that for free.

Another example, being away from home and living in the city for work, I would always love to be home. But I need money to buy me bus and boat tickets to reach home. I just can\’t ride without paying. And being with my family really really makes me happy.

Thus, happiness is not free. You need money. But not all.

There are simple happiness that are free. For example, seeing the sunset wherein the sky turned into pink or orange. The air we breathe, the cold wind, the sunny day, the rain that falls when the world is so hot. These are all free.

Most of the free happiness is given to us by God. Without price or interest. He just gives it to us because He loves us. But what is not free is the earthly and material things. Some are essentials like food and shelter but some are just merely wants and desires.

And most of the time, these earthly happiness would lead us to disappointments. When we want something but we cannot get it because we don\’t have enough resources. We get disappointed. And the sad part is sometimes we blame God. When in fact, He is given us the essential and our needs for FREE.

Have we thank God for waking us up everyday? Have we thank God for the air we breathe? Have we thank God that we are healthy despite the pandemic? Have we thank God for our family? Have we thank God that we are alive?

Maybe yes. Or maybe no. But let us not forget that the small yet the essential things God are giving us are the most important things we need to be happy. And fortunately, these are all free.

Earthly things are not free. Happiness from the earthly things need money. But these type of happiness give us free disappointment especially when we don\’t have money.

So, let us all live every single day with a happy and thankful heart. Appreciating the small things that would give us big happiness. 😊