Thank you!

It’s the end of the semester and I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who has visited my blog over the past 4 months. It’s been a great learning experience keeping up a real blog for the first time. Maybe sometime in the future I will return to the blog and continue posting, but for now this will be the end of Happy Girl. Keep smiling!

Meet Rob

For our final project, my professor asked us to report on someone or something relating to our topic. I decided to report on one particular person who I find very happy, and I want to give him to you. Rob Crowthers is a 22-year-old Rowan University student who I find as someone who encompasses what I’ve been trying to express all semester on this blog. Whether you can relate to him, or can learn from him, I hope I’ve accomplished what I wanted with this project. I interviewed him about what keeps him happy, his philosophies, how he stays upbeat, and what makes him happy. I hope you enjoy!

You can check it out here!

Talking to strangers

Don’t you wish that you ran into someone like this on the street? I think everyone could use a stranger to talk to every so often. It’s much more relieving than you think, if you have never done it. I’ve had a conversation with a complete stranger about pretty random and irrelevant things, and it was one of the most memorable conversations.

Happiness Timeline

Throughout the years, people have been encouraging us to stay happy and inspire us with their words. Here’s a timeline of happiness since before we even realized it.

Love

I was watching “Love Actually” the other night and when the opening scene came on, I realized how true (and appropriate) it was for my blog. So I searched and searched for it on YouTube and finally found it. I apologize for the shotty quality of the video, but the words and message are the most important part.

 

For the ladies

This is a poem I hold very close to my heart. Enjoy.

“After awhile you learn the subtle difference
Between holding a hand and chaining a soul,
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
And company doesn’t mean security,
And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts
And presents aren’t promises,
And you begin to accept you defeats
With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child
And learn to build all your roads
On today because tomorrow’s ground
Is too uncertain for plans, and futures have
A way of falling down in mid-flight.
After awhile you learn that even sunshine
Burns if you get too much
So you plant your own garden and decorate
Your own soul, instead of waiting
For someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure
That you really are strong.
And you really do have worth.
And you learn and learn…
With every goodbye you learn.”
- Anonymous

Positivity vs. Happiness

My professor recently posed the question to me whether positivity was the same thing as happiness. It got me thinking. I think most of us assume they are interchangable, but instead of that, I think they accent each other better than mirror each other.

We need to think positively in order to attain happiness. Positive thinking leads to happiness. You cannot have happiness without positivity, but in some ways, you can have positivity without happiness.

Often times we tend to disregard all of the great things in our life because there may be one or two missing or bad things. For example, if you have a great job and a great home but you are single and lonely, people usually focus on the one thing that’s missing rather than the great things they do have.  In order to accept this and be happy, you need to think positively about the fact you will fill your one void in your life. However, if you’re simply not happy about it, you can still be hopeful and think “maybe today.”

Photo courtesy of Meanest Indian on Flickr

What do you think?

HUG SOMEONE!

They say a hug a day keeps the blues away. If you’re feeling down, a hug from anyone will more than likely always cheer you up. Researchers found that a 20-second hug is known to make you feel better. So next time you’re low, hug someone!

Happy Interviews – Pt.1

What is Happiness? from Ashley Zazzarino on Vimeo.

 

A couple posts ago, I talked about how it’s hard to truly relate to the textbook definition of ‘happy.’ So, I asked various Rowan students what hapiness was to them. It’s much easier than reading a definition. Seeing and hearing others say what happiness is to them is so much more relatable and humane.

Thanks to Shana Schmoyer for sending me this picture for my blog! Stay happy =)