"There is such a thing as taking ourselves and the world too seriously, or at any rate too anxiously.  Half of the secular unrest and dismal, profane sadness of modern society comes from the vain idea that every man is bound to be a critic of life, and to let no day pass without finding some fault with the general order of things, or projecting some plan for its general improvement. And the loftier half comes from the greedy notion that a man's Life does consist, after all, in the abundance of things that he possesses, and that he is somehow or other more respectable and pious to be always at work trying to make a larger living, than it is to lie on your back in the green pastures and beside the still waters, and thank God that you are alive."

 --Henry Van Dyke--        

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        "When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds: your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed
yourself to be."

 --Patanjali--

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        "God left the world unfinished; the pictures unpainted, the songs unsung, and the problems unsolved, that man might know the joys of creation."

 
                    Chinese proverb:

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 somebody.

“Happiness comes from what we are, not what we have.”

Richard G. Scott
BYU Dev., June 3, 1990

        "Happiness consists not of having, but of being; not of possessing, but of enjoying.  It is the warm glow of a heart at peace with itself."

William George Jordan, The Majesty of Calmness, 1900, p. 54
Quoted by President David O. McKay, CR Oct. 1955, p. 8
Quoted by Mary Ellen Edmunds, Speeches 1995-96, p. 88

        “When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door
that we do not see the one which had been opened for us.”

        “Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes happiness.  It is not attained through
self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.”

        "Happiness is a state of being content or satisfied.  But sometimes it's hard to be content and satisfied--to have enough.  There will always be a newer watch, a more powerful computer, a fancier car.  But you can never get enough of what you don't need, because what you don't need never satisfies.  We spend money we don't have to buy things we don't need to impress people we don't like who don't come over and get impressed anyway."

Mary Ellen Edmunds, BYU Speeches, 1995-96, p. 88

        “If only we could realize that the momentary pleasure we might feel by an act of disobedience can never be equal to the feelings of peace and happiness that result from obedience.”

        “As God has designed our happiness—and the happiness of all His creatures, He never has—He never will institute an ordinance or give a commandment to His people that is not calculated in its nature to promote that happiness which He has designed.”

"Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect.  It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections."

        "Now I do not care how much wealth you pour into the laps of men, unless there is in their bosoms the Spirit of God, they are unhappy...It is so with all of us; unless we have the spirit of contentment in our hearts, we are miserable.

        "...If a man has all the wealth in creation, and has heaped upon him all the honours and powers that the world can give, his soul is discontented and miserable, unless he possesses the Spirit of Christ."

President George Albert Smith, JD 9:349
Quoted by Mary Ellen Edmunds, Speeches 1995-96, p. 89

        "The secret of happiness is to count your blessings while others are adding up their troubles.

Cited in BITS & PIECES

James E. Faust:

        "Many years of listening to the tribulations of man have persuaded me that the satisfaction of all desires is completely counterproductive to happiness.  Instant and unrestrained gratification is the shortest and most direct route to unhappiness."

Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year, 1974, p. 319