Le bonheur et la bonne humeur

"Si vous voulez que la vie vous sourit, apportez lui d'abord votre bonne humeur." Spinoza 

"If you want life to smile on you, you must first give him your good humor." Spinoza

Who knew that a candy wrapper could bare such wisdom? I feel that this little scrap of paper quantifies quite nicely my experience here in France; life is too short to have a bad attitude. We always here people say, "There are simply not enough hours in the day!" and while I agree with them wholeheartedly, I must add that it is useless to waste the fleeting hours in negativity.  Obviously there are those that battle depression and other malcontents of the mind who have little control over their own happiness, but I address those who choose to make their own misery when they have the power to do otherwise.  Negativity is counterproductive 9 times out of 10, and is strangely enough contagious, leading to a downward spiral of overall unhappiness and ungratefulness.  Ultimately, complaining incessantly about the tardiness of your train will not make it arrive any sooner;  whining about losing something will not make the past return it to you; and bemoaning your piles of work will not make them disappear.  The best way to help life smile on you is to laugh in the face of its difficulties, because the sunny forecast of a better day will appear sooner when you begin with less clouds. 

During my time in Paris, Kelly passed me a book entitled "Le Voyage d'Hector," which describes the journey of a psychiatrist seeking what renders people happy or unhappy.  He makes a point to question why those in the lands-of-the-most-psychiatrists are most often the wealthiest and most powerful.  He continues on to keep a notebook of revelations about "le bonheur," which are listed below:

1) Un bon moyen de gâcher son bonheur, c'est de faire des comparaisons.
    A great way to waste your happiness is to make comparisons.

2) Le bonheur arrive souvent par surprise.
    Happiness often comes by surprise. 

3) Beaucoup de gens voient leur bonheur seulement dans le futur.
    Many people see their happiness in terms of the future.

4) Beaucoup de gens pensent que le bonheur, c'est d'etre plus riche ou plus important.
    Many people think that happiness comes from being rich or important.

5) Le bonheur, parfois, c'est de ne pas comprendre.
    Happiness, sometimes, is to not understand.

6) Le bonheur c'est une bonne marche au milieu de belles montagnes inconnues.
    Happiness if a nice walk in the midst of beautiful, uncharted (foreign?) mountains.

7) L'erreur, c'est de croire que le bonheur est le but.
    The mistake is to think that happiness is the ultimate goal.

8) Le bonheur, c'est d'etre avec des gens qu'on aime.

-- Le malheur, c'est d'etre séparé de ceux qu'on aime.
   Happiness is to be with those you love.  Unhappiness is to be separated from those you love.

9) Le bonheur, c'est que sa famille ne manque de rien.
   Happiness is when your family hurts for nothing.
10) Le bonheur, c'est d'avoir une occupation qu'on aime.

    Happiness is to have an occupation you love/ is to love your job.

11) Le bonheur, c'est d'avoir une maison et un jardin.
    Happiness is to have a house and a garden.

12) Le bonheur, c'est plus difficile dans un pays dirigé par de mauvaises personnes.
    Being happy is more difficult in a country controlled/run by "bad people." (bad leaders)

13) Le bonheur, c'est de se sentir utile aux autres.
    Happiness is to feel useful to others.

14) Le bonheur, c'est d'etre aimé pour ce que l'on est.
    Happiness is to be loved for who you are.

Remarque: On est plus gentil avec un enfant qui sourit.
Remark: We are more gentle/kind to a child that smiles (a happy child) than those who do not.

15) Le bonheur, c'est de se sentir completement vivant.
    Happiness is to feel fully alive. 

16) Le bonheur, c'est de faire la fête.
    Happiness is to party/ to celebrate.

17) Le bonheur, c'est de penser au bonheur de ceux qu'on aime.
    Happiness is to think of the happiness of others.

18) Le bonheur, ce serait de pouvoir aimer plusieurs femmes en même temps.
    Happiness would be to have the ability to love many women at the same time. 

19) Le soleil et la mer, c'est le bonheur pour tout le monde.
    The sun and the sea bring happiness to everyone.

20) Le bonheur, c'est une manière de voir les choses. 
    Happiness is a way of seeing things/ a way of thinking. 

21) Un grand poison du bonheur, c'est la rivalité.
    A great poison/contaminant of happiness is rivalry.

22) Les femmes sont plus attentives que les hommes au bonheur des autres.
    Women are more attentive than men to the happiness of others.

23) Le bonheur, c'est de s'occuper du bonheur des autres?

    Happiness is to make others happy?