Are you happy?

I sent out an email earlier this week to my close friends and family asking

Are you happy?

How do you define happiness?

I was surprised by the thoughtfulness of the answers. Overall, everyone seemed to agree that they were more happy than unhappy. So I have posted a poll to see if everyone else confirms my feeling that overall people are more happy then unhappy.

Here are some of the responses from my friends and family.

Yes, I am happy because God made me and I happen to like myself -- insecurities and faults in all. After all, I am woman!

Instinctively, I would say "Yes, I'm happy". After all, what would people think if I answered this question as "No, I'm not happy"! Yes, I happen to care what other people think about me.

The obvious- where I’d like to have more money and a smaller butt, I am blessed to have wonderful parents who love me, great friends who I can always count on, and an awesome relationship.

I believe that God put me on this earth to help others and I’ve seen the difference that I have made in other peoples lives by living the life that God intended me to live.

When I come home in the evening, my son greets me and is so excited to tell me how his day was and what he did. It's that moment everyday that I realize God has a purpose for my life. I get great pride and happiness from the things that God has allowed me to have and the lifestyle my family lives. That's good enough for me.

So how do I define happiness? Being able to look at all the things in your life and focus on the good things. That is my goal every day and it's becoming easier and easier with each passing day.

Some people get so caught up in what makes them unhappy that they never stop to smell the roses and enjoy the view. Live, make mistakes (everyone does, despite what they tell you.) THAT is the key to happiness.

While you can be happy with your life, it doesn’t mean you are happy as a person.

I don’t have much to not be happy about.