Can I truly be happy for 100 days in a row? With the motivation to find an answer to that question, I decided to sign up for the 100 Happy Days Challenge.
I half-jokingly said that I might end up posting one hundred photos of my husband for this challenge because, well, he is obviously my major happy-maker. Haha :D But because God is so good and His love for me is immeasurable, I find myself with so much gratitude for so many things that make me happy every single day.
Truth be told, I had some inhibitions before I decided to go for the challenge. I didn’t want people to see my posts as mayabang, or something to that effect. Also, I didn’t want to be that annoying girl who exposes all the cheese and mush going on in her life — which might be over-sharing or TMI for some. In the end, I decided that I will be doing this for no one else but myself. I liked the idea of documenting God’s goodness in my life through the #100happydays challenge. Besides, you can never go wrong when you’re spreading good vibes, right? You’ll never know, you might inspire others to do it too. :)
It has been an amazing 100 days of happiness — in simple and profound ways. Some days, happiness made its presence felt from start to end. Some days, happiness was elusive, that I needed to make an effort to find it. Yes, there were days when I worried that I won’t have an entry for my #100happydays challenge. So sue me for being shallow, haha. :P
Indeed, there is always, ALWAYS something to smile about and be thankful for, no matter how small or trivial it may seem. It may come in the form of an uplifting quote you stumbled upon the Internet, or a cute baby who smiled at you on the train, or a bar of chocolate. I guess it’s all about the mindset. It’s like, if I’m having yet another stressful day in the office, I try to counter the negativity by telling myself “That’s okay, I’ll do a FRIENDS marathon at home after all this crap!” It diverts my mind into something worth looking forward to, and puts me in a better mood. Okay, I’ll be honest here and say that this does not work all the time. There are days when it takes much more than a FRIENDS marathon to make me feel better, but I guess the key thing here is having the ability to look at the brighter side and still have a grateful heart despite life’s difficulties.
My #100happydays journey was mostly made of grand and small (but meaningful) gestures from my husband, newlywed adventures, messages of assurance from God, kitchen experiments, little victories in life, and quality time with people who matter to me. I am so glad I took this challenge. It helped me focus on the blessings that God has so generously bestowed upon me, especially on my low days. It made me fall in love with my life even more, and inspired me to treasure everything that I have with utmost care. Best of all, it also served as a testimony of God’s greatness and faithfulness in my life.
So to answer my question, yes, it is possible to be happy 100 days in a row. Beyond that, even. It may take a whole lot of ‘practice’ to adapt the right kind of mindset into a habit, but in my experience, it proved to be the secret to living a happy life. :)
