The Pursuit of Happiness

As we are celebrating America's Independence Day, I get reminded of the values deeply anchored in the text of the historic document on display in the Archives in Washington D.C.  "The Pursuit of Happiness" is one of those values that the newly founded nation hopes to achieve.  Oceans were crossed to leave countries and societies that were not providing conditions for the pursuit of happiness.  The Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan ambitiously established Gross National Happiness as an alternative to Gross National Product to measure a nation's progress.  International conferences have been held on this subject to find out how we can put an economic value to what we understand to be a fundamental human right.  Bhutan is not a member of the G20, the world's leading economic powerhouses, but ranks first when you measure its people's happiness.  They have spiritually been able to figure out that even though we are responsible for our own happiness, it is essential to understand that we are all connected, that our actions define consequences not just in our immediate community, but in our globalized world.  Whether that is figuring out how we can achieve world peace, how to eradicate disease, or achieve women's rights, education for all, or environmental sustainability - we all share this responsibility.  Once we truly understand that, our actions will change to be mindful about how we define and pursue happiness.  I still believe it is a right that everyone should have, but it is our joint effort to make it happen.  It might start with being grateful for what we have, much more difficult to practice than one might think.  Happiness is like concentric circles, it starts with a drop (or a seed that traveled from afar), that ripples the water, moving outward in even bigger circles.  We all feel happy for different reasons, but is based on the very basic needs that all humans share:  a home, a loving family, friends, community, food, health.  In our modern world, we have to add to those:  education, peace, equality, freedom.  That is what holds true to Thomas Jefferson's Pursuit of Happiness in the Declaration of Independence.