Happiness is found when you stop comparing yourself to other people.
Due to our varied life experiences, everyone has a unique perspective of the world.
Each of us derives meaning and value from different things.
As a result, we all experience happiness and express it in different ways.
As we get older, we start to notice people living a variety of lifestyles. Sometimes we wish for these things for ourselves because we believe that these folks are happy with their lives.
We tend to define happiness more in terms of what we see than in terms of who we are. In the end, we define our own happiness in terms of how other people live their lives.
It doesn't stop there, though; we go farther and define other people's happiness in terms of what we have come to accept as a good life.
So what happens is that we start judging someone's happiness based solely on what we see, forgetting that happiness is a condition that is unique to each individual.
While some people have little and are happy, others have a lot and are unhappy.
Abundance creates comfort and not necessarily happiness.
Let us be thankful that what is most needful and useful, generally is most cheap and common. Though men value very highly their gold and silver, and the luxuries which are counted the best fruits of every land, yet in a time of famine they willingly barter them for bread.
What is happiness? City life? Bright lights?
Perhaps it is, perhaps not!
Is the village boy who strived to leave the village behind for the bright city life happy?
Or is it the city boy who finds love in the dull slow paced village that finds happiness?
Who is to judge if not the very person that strives for his own definition of happiness?
We cannot account for all that we have as happiness and discount other people as unhappy because we think they lack what we have.
However, just because you don't require much to be happy doesn't mean you should settle for the absolute minimum.
Live life to the fullest and always seek to improve yourself.