Spring is in the air. A perfect day to Celebrate International Day of Happiness! The photo above was taken during a beautiful spring time walk in Houston as I attend the ASCD Conference.

Last year, during the Slice of Life Challenge, I wrote Quotes about Writing –  Pick One – Go. I described a favorite opening activity I use in professional learning opportunities. I often provide educators with a list of quotes focused on the area of study. They are to choose one that speaks to them and then gather with others that may have chosen that quote. Their conversations focus on the reasons for choosing on the quote. The activity helps people learn a little more about others in the room.

Today let’s look at a list of quotes about Happiness. Choose one and reflect in the comment section below what speaks to you. Or feel free to add a favorite quote about Happiness.

• “If you want happiness for an hour — take a nap.’ If you want happiness for a day — go fishing. If you want happiness for a year — inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime — help someone else.” -Chinese Proverb

• “Happiness depends upon ourselves.” — Aristotle

• “When I was in grade school, they told me to write down what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I wrote down happy.  They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, I told them they didn’t understand life.” – Unknown

• “The happiest people don’t necessarily have the best of everything, they just make the best out of everything that comes their way.” – Unknown

• “Happiness is when what you think and what you say and what you do are in harmony.’ – Mahatma Gandhi

• “Most folks are as happy as they make up their mind to be.” – Abraham Lincoln

Books about Happiness:

The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun

Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life’s Most Important Skill

The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work

The Happiness Mindset: 12 Strategies for Happiness & Success I Wish Someone Had Told Me When I Was Younger

The End of the Rainbow: How Educating for Happiness—Not Money—Would Transform Our Schools

Fill a Bucket: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Young Children

Have You Filled a Bucket Today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids

Movies about Happiness:

Project Happiness

Happy

Internet Resources about Happiness

Project Happiness

Teaching your Child the Art of Happiness

Action for Happiness

Keep Spreading Happiness All Around You!