Be Happy!
For us Jews, it's not just good natured advice, it's a commandment!
That''s right! We're commanded to be happy! On Purim this past week, on Pesach coming up and just about on all Jewish holidays, we're commanded to be happy. How is it possible? How can we just switch off our sorrows and simply be happy? It smacks of naivete...
Perhaps we can find the answer in our childhood:
What do you do when you see a happy child? Nothing.
How do you react when you see a child whose serious? You ask him what's wrong!
What do you do when you see a serious adult? nothing.
What do you do when you see a happy adult? You ask him what's wrong!
Isn't a funny how we have no problem with happy kids, but an adult whose happy makes us uncomfortable!?
Clearly, our default setting is to be happy, but something goes wrong when we grow up!
The difference is clear: Adults are self absorbed but children are too naive to think about themselves.
As babies, we have no problems running around without clothes, were simply not thinking about ourselves. But as we grow older, were thinking about ourselves, our success, and whether or not were outdoing the 'Cohens' next door.
'He who has a hundred, wants two hundred, He who has two hundred wants four hundred.' Talmud.
As long as were self absorbed we cannot ever be happy. No matter how much we have,we always instinctively need more.
Its only when we stop thinking about ourselves and focus on the needs of others, that we can ever be truly content.
That's why on Purim, we give gifts of food to each other and charity to the Poor. That's why on Pesach we care for the matza and wine needs of the poor and invite others to our Seder Tables.
The Holiday Mitzvahs shift our focus from ourselves onto others. The automatic result is a sense of happiness!