Why do kids live with an infectious joy while adults are constantly looking for this state of happiness?

The truth about happiness is that it is a state of mind. It comes and goes, and nobody will constantly be happy. By trying to look for this utopian society we are creating a dystopic one.

There are so many violently terrible things in this world, but they are made up by the hundreds and thousands of small, wonderfully joyful experiences life gives us.

Children are able to absorb this with the utmost ability—they embody joy. They find curiosity and creativity in everything.

They go to school, playgrounds, daycares that are abundantly colorful—full of shapes—a base for stimulating creativity. While as an adult, organizations expect employees to be creative, think outside the box, and have this intellectual curiosity in an environment that screams insane asylum.

Dull colors are going to yield dull results. There is nothing about an office that screams creativity. If anything it is putting people inside a box. Cities are bound to this perpetual misery, too.

To think outside the box, you need to know what is inside the box first, and this is only done if you explore. Optimism and adventure are more powerful than we give them credit, and children radiate this positive, curious energy.

Why do we want to teach this out of people? Why is joy so dismissed? Why is the idea of becoming a mature adult a person that also has a callous soul?

Circles. Vibrant colors. Bubbles. Pops. Patterns. Multiplicity. Lightness. Up.

Joy is different from happiness in that it involves the positive emotions with moments we have in the physical world. They are momentary and thought of as such. There is not an expectation that it will last more than a moment—therefore people don’t look for it, but we all should. Because these moments sum up to be our lives and these states of happiness we spend so much time trying to hold on to.

Joy is measured by the excitement and ability a moment can make us want to jump up and down, and if something is really making you happy—trust me you will want to do just this.

Joy is elusive, but also contagious. Positivity is too, and this idealistic, unrealistic way of thinking is the exact way we will find ourselves outside the box these institutions put us in. If we are told to dream and shoot for the stars, why would we become complacent with a reality that contains us inside a box along with everyone else?

We, as a society, overlook joy in our quest to find our pursuit of happiness, and it is a shame because we overlook the very thing that would allow us to find it. Joy is important because it reminds us of humanity—the one we all have and were shown growing up.

It is all about the little things—the feelings, perceptions, and senses. The coffee, bumping into an old friend, wearing bits of color, seeing someone smile, ice cream, ice cream with sprinkles, taking off on an airplane, or eating breakfast for dinner. And most of the time, they don’t just bring joy to you, but to everyone. Most of us think that we are so different from one another, but truthfully we are united in the things that bring us joy.

So, what brings you joy?