Happiness is crucial in all our lives

Robert Gabriel Mugabe has enriched my life. To many this may seem outrageous but if the president of Zimbabwe didn’t exist I wouldn’t know any Zimbabweans. Thousands of Zimbabweans now reside in Ireland and I count some of these wonderful people as good friends. Out of oppression, for some, has come a happier existence for me, despite the obvious guilt. In turn I feel it my duty to make these people happier even though they have left their homeland under traumatic circumstances.

Many equate health with happiness. It is not hard to imagine that when people are unwell they become unhappy. In the 1990’s King Hussein of Jordan, one of the world’s richest people was ill with cancer and, because of his immense wealth, made regular trips from Jordan to the US for his treatment. In 1999 the King died and it goes to prove that no matter the affluence you cannot buy health. Happiness, similarly, cannot be purchased.

Money, drugs, alcohol, sex, sport, the sun – these are just some things that make us happy. When those of us suffer bereavement or some sort of personal trauma we lose interest in life and we no longer engage in activities we used to love to do. This can be seen as natural however for many people this can lead to depression and great unhappiness. As we get older it becomes more important that we feel happy in ourselves.

10 years younger is on the telly this evening and those featured seem to be unhappy due to premature aging. One of the ladies featured tonight is 55 but in a vox pop she has been told she looks more like 65! A man can be as ugly as a donkey’s bottom but the ladies need to be touched up with make-up and looking good is very important to a woman’s self esteem. It’s part of life that 90 per cent of fashion stores cater for women and all of this goes to help keep a woman happy and cheerful.

However there’s no reason that we all should participate in life and be as happy as we can. That applies to men just as much. Topman, Jack+Jones, River Island and stores such as Best’s and Unique are some of the places men now shop to give themselves a better outlook on life and make us happy even if it’s only temporary. In fact retail therapy is now seen as being good for our morale.

A degree of happiness is critical if your life revolves around a 9-5 job followed by having to deal with children or any extra baggage such as a disability. I have a good friend who goes to the gym regularly and is as fit as a fiddle he finds it makes him happy. But that isn’t for me. Even though I am a few pounds overweight my source of happiness could never be found in a gym.

I like to engage in meeting people and as a member of Amnesty Ireland, and also the Dublin-based Africa Centre, the people I meet and the work I engage in gives me a satisfaction and also brings happiness with it. Right now it would be good if my Zimbabwean friends could share in the happiness that I have found and a good start would be the end of the Mugabe dictatorship at home.
© Ian Callagy 2009