DISTINCTION DRAWN

Wairarapa Times-Age, 12 September 1941, Page 2

DISTINCTION DRAWN

HAPPINESS AND ENJOYMENT.

There is a distinction between happiness and enjoyment, writes the Bishop of Norwich. Happiness goes deeper and is more lasting —it lasts, too, in retrospect, happiness then usually predominating over ■ distress. Enjoyment is transient and superficial. Happiness belongs to the heart, and many who do not possess it there seek enjoyment as a supposed substitute. You will find unhappy people becoming bright and radiant for a while if outward circumstances and engagements take them out of themselves. Eut when these pass they relapse into their usual unhappiness and discontent. They dislike the common ways of life and resent its worries instead of facing them with a calm spirit of good purpose. They are almost afraid to be alone, and welcome any interruption to break the monotony. “The quietude of domesticity” makes no appeal. Their restlessness cannot settle down. They want their own way, their own plans; but when the day ends it only shows a record of fruitless trivialities. Now, although the war has brought frayed nerves, it has promoted purposefulness. No doubt we can see, although to a less degree than in the last war, men and women first undertaking one kind of activity and then dropping it for something else. But generally speaking the war effort is steady, and people are settling themselves to carry it through. This involves the self-discipline which marks one of the roads to happiness. We must hope that, when our victory comes,! this self-discipline may continue. One of the failures which followed the winning of the last war was that its bracing endeavour yielded to an unbracing self-indulgence; this tendency to relapse is always strong. The deterioration was seen in the manner of welcoming men returning from the front. Excited, hilarious plans were made for their entertainment, when very likely all the time they valued more the simple happiness of home life and of finding themselves back in the familiar round with those who were deal’ to them. The desire for selfish enjoyment quickly reasserted itself and came to stay. This time the purpose is firmer, and chastened by the universal need of fortitude, when few can reject the imperious call to stand up against the onslaught and to make a definite contribution toward victory by their own effort. The lesson of discipline will have gone deeper and last longer.