There's a thought that's been bothering me from time to time and it has something to do with my pursuit of happiness.
I realize that being happy as a child is different than being happy now that I'm a more mature person. I know deep in my heart that I had a happy childhood. Even though that our life was very simple back then, I still feel happy throughout the day. I find pleasure playing with my friends on the farm. We snack on anything that nature provides and it would please us. I can't remember anything that I would more than what I had back then.
Time flies so fast and now I live in the city. We have a pleasing home with anything that we need. Everything is accessible and it would only take me less than an hour to get to the commercial establishments. I don't fancy luxury things but I usually have the urge to want things. Good food is one of them.
What's bothering me is that I don't feel happier having nice things in my life than having simpler things when I was still younger.
It doesn't feel like I'm having the best time in my life enjoying a nice meal than the feeling I had having a few wild berries that we pick ourselves in the field. Why is that?
What I think is that the quality of experience has a long-lasting effect on our memory.
A good example is that I can still remember the time when I and my family would go to the farm during the summer season and catch fish from the pond. And then we will spend the rest of the morning cooking the fishes that we caught and have them for lunch. It is still very clear to me even though it happened many years ago. I would probably remember it even after a decade from now.
But whenever I try to recall a fancy dinner that I had in a good restaurant, I'm having difficulty remembering the clear details about a specific date. It almost feels like they are repressed and archived somewhere in the unconsiousness part of my brain. I do remember some but they too vague to even talk about it.
I think that my childhood memories are remarkable because of the quality of experience and that I shared them with my family. It makes the memory long-lasting and accessible. These are the kind of memories that makes me feel happy whenever I remember them. It gives me a positive outlook on life and it gives a comforting feeling that gets me through a rough day.
Time flies so fast.
Cherish the things that matter the most.
Stay positive!
