Our Happiness Narrative

Our Happiness Narrative Nearly 25-year-old writer and explorer on a year-long quest to meet 25 strangers each week, while recording their advice about happiness.

While many experts offer opinions on well being or analyze perspectives on happiness based on survey research, surprisingly few projects focus on interacting with strangers and exploring these perspectives "in the wild." Without asking people their beliefs about how human beings can best experience happiness, we will never fully understand what our global community thinks about this subject. Next

month, I will turn 25-years-old, which means I will have lived 9,131 days. Much of my work as a writer, researcher, editor, and college English instructor focuses on projects that are framed within social justice issues or that explore well being in literature and society. Before my 26th birthday, I plan on speaking to 9,131 strangers each day about happiness (about 25 strangers per day). This page will illustrate my quest. In an effort to promote positivity and develop a comprehensive narrative that contains ordinary peoples' advice on how to best experience happiness, I will ask each stranger the following question:

"What do you think people should do if they want to experience happiness?"

Interested in learning more about this project? Contact me at [email protected]

11/01/2017

“just to be honest with yourself right from the beginning and that’s how you meet honest people, and your life can go from there as an honest person. That means it will be easier for you to meet people who… you make them happy, they make you happy. You understand what I’m saying? You understand each other with honesty, and that will lead to a happy life because you will be able to lead with honesty and perspective, and if there’s no hiding ways, then you’ll be open forever.”

02/03/2017

"definitely they should have kids. So I have one daughter, eight years old, one is four years old, and I think they make myself and my husband really happy. We're going to San Francisco, using Airbnb. There's a treehouse I've always wanted to go to, but they don't allow kids. So my friend's going to watch my children for one night and I'm going to enjoy the treehouse with my husband. I think happiness is experiencing everything with your family, but then you do have some alone time with your husband or someone really special for you."

02/03/2017

"It's about relationships, you know, having people that you care about."

02/02/2017

"That's a hard question. I don't know, just do whatever they want to do and go out and live their life."

02/01/2017

"I think it's all about luck and the people who you meet. When you meet someone, you want to make sure that they like you as much as you like them. I had a friend who met a guy in Coney Island and she really liked him. But the next thing she knew, all of her money was gone and he'd run off with another girl. But if you get lucky and meet the right people, then you can live a happy life. You know, like if you’re married, if some woman wants to go someplace and if the guy goes with her, then that’s a good thing. But if the guy don’t want to go with her, he goes his own way, it’s no good. You know?"

1). What is happiness?Right: "Peace within my soul."Left: "Yes. You know it when you feel it." 2). What was the happiest...
06/06/2015

1). What is happiness?

Right: "Peace within my soul."

Left: "Yes. You know it when you feel it."

2). What was the happiest day of your life?

Left: "Oh, I have too many of those. I have zillions of those."

Right: "Giving birth to my first child."

3). Is there anything that you would like to add?

Left: "Well, it's a skill."

Right: "Yes, that's what I was going to say, that it takes work."

[This may sound a little strange, but since you don't want a photo is it okay if I take a photo of your shoes? The family down there had this great parrot kite and since they didn't want a photo either, I took a photo of that.]

Left: "You can take a photo of my umbrella [laughs]. That's prettier."

1). What is happiness?Right: "When you're stress free with nothing to worry about." 2). What was the happiest day of you...
06/05/2015

1). What is happiness?

Right: "When you're stress free with nothing to worry about."

2). What was the happiest day of your life?

Left: "Probably when I won the state championships for football."

Right: "Yeah, when I won the state championships for track.

Right and Middle: "He does football [points left], and we both do track."

To middle: [Was winning the state championships for track your happiest day?]

Middle: "No, that wasn't mine, but... I don't know."

3). Is there anything that you would like to add?

Left: "You should surround yourself with people that are positive and not with negative people that bring you down."

Right: "Yeah, surround yourself with happy people."

When I saw this mother, father, and son flying this sweet parrot kite, I had to approach them. Even though they didn't w...
06/05/2015

When I saw this mother, father, and son flying this sweet parrot kite, I had to approach them. Even though they didn't want their photo taken, the son agreed to pose with the kite:

1). What is happiness?

Son: "Being in the park, flying a kite on a beautiful day."

Mother "We're visiting from India."

[All of you or are you both visiting your son?]

"Yes, we're visiting him."

2). What was the happiest day of your life?

Mother: "To be with the children."

Son: "Likewise. Being here with my parents."

3). Is there anything that you would like to add?

Son: "It [happiness] feels really good."

1). What is happiness?Left: "Good food, no stress, and comfort. I felt that way yesterday."Right: "Attitude!" 2). What w...
06/04/2015

1). What is happiness?

Left: "Good food, no stress, and comfort. I felt that way yesterday."

Right: "Attitude!"

2). What was the happiest day of your life?

Left: "Probably when I was in like 4th grade, I went to this wedding and it was a whole week long. There was a lot of good food, great company, and I was a kid so there were just no worries in the world."

Right: "Isn't mine supposed to be when my baby is born?"

[Do you have a baby?]

"No, not yet, but when I have a baby, that will be the happiest day. Or when I'm retired on my yacht."

3). Is there anything that you would like to add?

Left: "It's an attitude!"

1). What is happiness?Back left: "Chipotle." Left: "Happiness is feeling comfortable." 2). What was the happiest day of ...
06/04/2015

1). What is happiness?

Back left: "Chipotle."

Left: "Happiness is feeling comfortable."

2). What was the happiest day of your life?

Back left: "Going to see Beyonce on tour."

Right: "Going to see Eminem on tour or the day I got my car."

Left: "Laying in my bed."

3). Is there anything that you would like to add?

Right: "I feel like it should be a priority."

Back left: "And waffles also bring happiness, add that too."

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