How Can We Be Happy Like Children?
A child wakes up wanting to discover the world, to play, run, jump, and explore. Nature has given children a special ability to find enjoyment almost everywhere. Give a child the simplest object, and he can turn it into a game. Almost everything becomes an opportunity for discovery and renewal. This is why children have so much energy and happiness.
How can we become happy like children again? We need to remain children in our attitude toward life. We should constantly search for something new that we have not yet attained, something that attracts us and opens a new world before us.
The difficulty is that adult life is filled with obligations. We have to earn a living, support a family, take care of our health, fulfill responsibilities, and deal with countless necessities. So where can we find happiness within all of this?
The difference between a game and work is mainly in our attitude. In a game, I enjoy the activity itself. In work, I usually tolerate the activity because I expect some reward afterward. But imagine that I have to walk several miles somewhere and suddenly a good friend joins me. We talk and laugh, and I hardly notice the journey. I begin enjoying every step rather than merely waiting to reach the destination.
Our entire life can become like this. Even difficult actions requiring great effort can become enjoyable if the right environment creates an atmosphere of connection and shared purpose around us.
The wisdom of connection teaches us how to build such relationships. Through connection with others, we can begin to feel the single force that connects the opposites in nature and develops life. Then connection itself becomes a source of energy, meaning, and joy.
Even an ordinary workday can become a game. If coworkers begin by strengthening their connection and then spend the day thinking about how each person’s actions contribute to that common bond, routine tasks acquire another meaning. Physical distance and separate responsibilities can actually deepen the inner connection.
Then everyday life becomes an adventure of discovering new forms of connection. Like children, we begin receiving pleasure not only from reaching some future goal, but from every step along the way.
The secret of happiness is therefore in positive human connection. When we learn how to connect and feel ourselves as one, life itself becomes a game filled with discovery, energy, and joy.
Based on "New Life 228 – Happy as a Child" with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.