Happiness is...

I went to visit Woo Por Por in the afternoon.  (Por Por = grandmother in Chinese)  She is a special grandmotherly family friend to my sister and me.  She has known my parents for ages. She found me my first piano teacher.  I have fond memories of her hand-knitted sweaters.  People used to stop us on the street to compliment us on those sweaters.  I haven’t seen her in 25 years, so one of the first things I wanted to do in Hong Kong was to visit her at the nursing home.

I remember her laugh well.  She still has it.  Especially when she joked about her very short-term memory nowadays.  I was struck by how full of joy she was.  It was the kind of joy that comes from within.  I was not surprised, but it gave me a lot to think about.  Frankly, it is easier for me to understand a grumpy old person than a joyful one.  You are in a (nice) nursing home.  You are often tired.  You have limited mobility.  You cannot taste, see, or hear well.  You have lost your spouse.  You are reliant on other people to do things for you.  You are told you cannot do this or cannot go there.  Hey, I would be grumpy too.

I saw this magnet on her fridge: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life” – Psalm 23.

We live in a world full of ideas on how to achieve happiness—or better yet, joy—by getting more of something: “When I get a promotion”, “If I buy ___”, “When I find someone to share my life with”, “If I can (fix one of many faults)”, “After I eat ____”, etc.  But no amount of things or even people can get rid of that feeling of emptiness (or inadequateness) that we/I feel sometimes.  It is disappointing that the validation we/I get from achieving something is often fleeting.  It is not sustainable, because most of us start the cycle again, trying to check off the next thing to buy/get/fix/do.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to have goals.  But when is it enough? 

Starting this new chapter of my life in Hong Kong has made me realize how exhausted I have been from feeling like I need to check off the next thing to buy/get/fix/do to achieve happiness. Woo Por Por is a reminder that true joy comes from trusting that God is enough.  As I get ready to move into my new place in the morning and for work on Monday (and who knows what else!), I am comforted in knowing that everything will be fine because I have everything I need, if I would just get out of God’s way and let Him work in my life.