Article January 26, 1952 Issue

THE TRUE BASIS FOR HAPPINESS

MIRIAN ROOD READING

Have you ever entertained the thought, "I should be the happiest person in the world if..."? Or you may have heard the remark, "I should be the happiest person in the world if my husband (or perhaps some other member of the family) were only interested in Christian Science!" Some fathers feel that they would be happy if their sons would join them in their businesses or take up the profession outlined by them. Some mothers feel that if they could only have their children near them, they would be happy. Occasionally someone believes that the possession of a million dollars would bring him great happiness; another may feel that an opportunity to work would bring him happiness, while others may feel that if they only had their health, they would not ask for anything more. The condition for happiness seems in such cases precariously posited on something extraneous to the individual.

A student who was deeply impressed by always seeing beautiful cut flowers in the office of a dearly loved practitioner thought many times, "Oh, I should be the happiest person in the world if people were to send beautiful cut flowers like that to me." Several years later, on a gray November day, her thought was a deeper hue of gray than the day. Gloomy thoughts were being entertained because she had received news of a considerable financial loss.

At this time a dozen American Beauty roses were delivered to her. After they had been carefully arranged, she remembered the lovely flowers she had seen in her friend's office and also her thought. This awakened her somewhat from the sense of gloom, and she began to reason: "The condition is present that I felt would bring happiness. I thought that with flowers I would be the happiest person in the world, Why not claim my happiness?" With a burst of light the words of Mary Baker Eddy from "Science and Health with Key to Scriptures" came to her (p. 57), "Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love." She saw that happiness can never be conditioned on some if, but upon the understanding of God's never-failing care. The certainty and continuity of God's giving are indicated in James (1:17), "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." And in John we read (16:22), "Your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you."

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