The Art of Being Happy[1]
I
WHAT must we do to be happy? The thing is not hard. Much knowledge is not necessary for this, nor much talent, but only a real good will to do one's duty. Happiness, as far as it can exist here below, consists in peace, in the joy of a good conscience. Our conscience will be joyous and peaceful if it know not remorse; it will not know remorse if we are careful not to offend God. To fly from sin is, therefore, the chief source of happiness on earth. If our conscience is pure, our life will be happy. There are none happier than saints, for there are none more innocent.
II
What is it that secures happiness in a home? Before everything else, religion: let all love well our good God, let all say their prayers morning and night, let all put their trust in divine providence. In the next place, union: let the members of the household be affectionate toward one another, having only one heart and one soul, not saying or doing anything that may pain any one of them. Then again, the spirit of sacrifice: we must be ready to do without something in order to make another member of the family enjoy it; we must give up our own personal tastes to conform to the tastes of others. Finally, pliancy of character: not to be hard to deal with, touchy, sour, proud; not to be obstinately rooted in one's ideas, not to grow impatient about mere nothings, but to have a large mind and a generous heart. A family whose members possess these qualities is a paradise on earth.
III
There is a word which can not be said too often to every Christian whom God has destined to live, converse, and labor in the society Page:Withgodbookofpra00las.djvu/848 Page:Withgodbookofpra00las.djvu/849 Page:Withgodbookofpra00las.djvu/850
- ↑ Translated from the French by the Rev. M, Russell, S.J.