Daily Human – The Secret of Happiness – 25/8/21

I met an uncle (father’s first cousin) and his family after a really long time. We have always been very fond of each other and needless to say, catching up after so long was joyful happy occasion.

Sometime during dinner, someone made a remark about health and eating well ( he has two doctor kids by the way). It was an opportune moment for me to talk about the famous Harvard study on the source of real happiness. It’s something I always quote during such conversations and really believe in.

Watch this TED talk to learn more about the study.

A short summary of the study’s findings.

“The surprising finding is that our relationships and how happy we are in our relationships has a powerful influence on our health. Taking care of your body is important, but tending to your relationships is a form of self-care too. That, I think, is the revelation.”

Close relationships, more than money or fame, are what keep people happy throughout their lives. Those ties protect people from life’s discontents, help to delay mental and physical decline, and are better predictors of long and happy lives than social class, IQ, or even genes.

We were having a nice chicken dish. Not something you would classify as healthy. Everyone was being watchful of how much they were eating.

After we discussed the Harvard study, the dynamic changed. Every time we had a laugh, we agreed that we had earned ourselves a little more happiness. So we could eat some more.

There was more laughter and more eating.

There are two types of people. One, eat to live. The other, live to eat. I will add a third type.

Those who laugh so that they can live to eat.