Joel Musika on Happiness

 Hello my friends!  Joel Musika here just checking in and wishing you a happy halloween!  I have been thinking about happiness a lot lately.  My work at Canon has brought me a lot of happiness.  So has my time here int he united states.  I was reminded today of an old story from Kenyan culture.  I have shared it below. 

An old man lived in the village. He was one of the most unfortunate people in the world. The whole village was tired of him, he was always gloomy, constantly complained and always was in a bad mood. The longer he lived, the more bile was becoming and the more poisonous were his words. People avoided him, because his misfortune became contagious. It was even unnaturally and insulting to be happy next to him. He created the feeling of unhappiness in others.
But one day, when he got eighty years old, an incredible thing happened. Instantly everyone heard the rumour: “An Old Man is happy today, he doesn’t complain about anything, smiles, and even his face is freshened up”. The whole village gathered together. An old man was asked:
– What happened to you?
– Nothing special.. – he answered. – Eighty years I’ve been chasing happiness, and it was useless. And then… I decided to live without happiness and just enjoy life… That is why I am happy now!