Real Happiness

Pic from FB

Shopping used to be fun.  I would buy anything that caught my fancy.  I thought that when I retired and had more time plus being in Singapore, I could spend hours doing what used to give me endless pleasure.

This did not happen.  My life changed and I no longer felt the need to go on a shopping spree.

Stephen used to shake his head at the amount of clothes I had.  He said that I could wear a different outfit over a year without having to repeat a look.  Well, yes, it was true.  

One cupboard of 84 blouses

At the end of my working era, I believe I had over 200 blouses, 8 black pairs of pants and almost all the basic colours of slacks.  Add to this, my skirts (long and short), plus the jackets and formal attire.  Since I stopped work, I've given away some of my clothes.  Maybe I have about 50 per cent now of what I used to have.

I also certainly amassed a huge collection of costume and real jewellery.  These were bought over the years or gifts I received.  At that time, it was never enough and whenever there was a 'good' buy, I'd buy it. I went through phases of pearls, crosses, Peruvian jewellery, precious and semi-precious stones.

A small portion of my stuff

Now, despite giving away quite a bit, I'm still left with so much and yet I only use the same favourites over and over again.

This is precisely why the picture on FB struck a chord in me.  It captured how I feel today.  All the things I bought only brought me temporary happiness.  I used to think that real happiness came from being able to buy anything you see.  I was wrong.

The real happiness comes from time spent with family and friends and doing what I love.

These days I'm doing what I love and it is a good feeling to have worked hard all those years, to have gone through all that and to be where and who I am now.

Yes, it is as simple as that, if you are looking for real happiness.