Venezuelans and Filipinos - Happy people

In the midst of a busy week overflowing with tension, I wonder why I could still face things with equanimity, smile, keep in touch with my family and laugh about my clumsiness. Maybe it's genetic because my father is a very convivial and festive human being, maybe cultural because Filipinos take challenges with a good laugh or maybe a mix of both. Though this week's tension is high, I still find it pleasant. It snowed from Monday to Wednesday. I was even thinking of building a snowman this weekend in a nearby park but unfortunately, the rain melted and washed the snow away. Today, the sun is proudly shining. Makes me feel that the cherry trees will blossom very soon to welcome spring with a blast of soft pink petals highlighting the blue horizon. What a happy sight indeed.

Speaking about happiness, the November 2004 issue of the University of Michigan's World Values Survey revealed that Filipinos are among the happiest people in Asia. An article about this is published in Times magazine for Asia. And in one of its latest surveys on 50 countries, Venezuelans were the happiest, followed by the Nigerians. The Filipinos ranked sixth overall and first in Asia. Most of the wealthy nations were not in the top 10. This only goes to show that although money is power, it is not always the source of happiness.

Until then, "Don't worry be happy".

Life