Finding Happiness Won’t be on Mount Everest

A collective list of the most basic steps to happiness

Okay, I love Mount Everest. Fascinated by it. I can’t imagine the emotional rollercoaster of summiting this incredible giant. But that’s a pipedream.

Now before we say anything is possible, let me tell you… this is not one of them! For one… I’m afraid of heights.

Plus a little anemia (not good for mountain climbing) and an old knee injury. So trust me, Mount Everest is best left as a dream unfulfilled.

Thankfully, happiness doesn’t have to be as elusive as a trek up 8,849 metres or 29,032 feet of snow, ice, The Death Zone, and oxygen depletion.

Happiness can be simple and intrinsic.

Interesting fact: Did you know that once a climber reaches the height of 8000 metres or, 26,000 feet at what is known as ‘The Death Zone’ on Everest, their body begins to die “minute by minute”. According to Business Insider, the body’s cells, heart and lungs begin to shut down even with supplementary oxygen.

Of course, happiness is subjective, but what if we could lower our expectations of what can make us happy?

Some of us envision spending our days worshiping the sun on a sandy beach someplace tropical. We believe this will bring us happiness. Except, what if we can’t get to that beach? I know, it’s a subjective emotion, but we can be happy, we should be happy.

Some of us believe a new puppy, finding the perfect partner, or starting a family will make us happy… finally.

But what if none of those things happen? Why wait for external circumstances to make us happy? Why subject ourselves to this?

You can be disappointed for a minute, but then let that sh** go. It’s time to recognize intrinsic happiness. It’s life-changing.

I remember the day well. I was walking with my best little four-legged friend when I noticed how large the trees seemed. They weren’t monster-sized trees, but somehow they seemed larger to me that day.

I looked up; I inhaled a deep breath of fresh air just following the spring rain and felt true inner peace, for the first time. This inner peace was independent of anyone else and it was unconditional of material items, work, or success.

I guess according to Oprah we could call it an ‘aha moment’. Although I don’t think the word ‘aha’ does this any justice. The moment felt larger, a revelation. That’s the right word.

The hardest thing in the world is to simplify your life; it’s so easy to make it complex.

Yvon Chouinard — (Mountain Climber & Environmentalist)

It was then that I realized nature and the trees will always be larger than my problems. They will continue to be larger than life. Maybe in a way, the impervious nature of the tree has somehow been metaphorically handed over to me.

This happened when I most needed it, we were living in non-ideal accommodations as we lost our home to a building fire. Without insurance… of course, my daughter and I had to start over again.

It wasn't until this day while walking with my little ol’ beagle that I realized the power of this intrinsic happiness. And make no mistake…it is powerful.

Fast forward to the pandemic, when the world shut down. The air was so clean, that we could see the coastal mountains clearer than on any day that I could remember.

I would open the door and breathe in the fresh air. Side note: I remember thinking this is what life must smell like for my little Beagle daily. Just pure nature.

This made me happy. The simplicity of the fresh air made me happy. I have since moved to an apartment surrounded by trees.

You ask me about the past, you ask me about the future, the only way to be happy is to be living right now.

Yvon Chouinard

Why is intrinsic happiness so important?

With inner peace, we are more capable of handling what comes our way. Problems with a partner or coworker can be worked out or resolved, or you will find a solution to the problem.

This peace and intrinsic happiness can offer you confidence and strength to manage difficult situations. Or, it will allow you to just sit and be happy. Of course, not weird like grinning maniacally at the wall happy, but just the knowledge and know-how to live in that moment.

I’m like everyone else, I have problems. Some seem insurmountable. But until now…those problems were larger than life. Now, the only thing larger than life is the trees outside my window, and my ability to turn any forceful problems into either manageable situations or in a worst-case scenario; acceptance.

Either way, inner peace gives me the ability to handle that worst-case scenario.

Your best steps to innate happiness

Write a gratitude journal

Berkely Well Being Institute suggests always studying and keeping in mind all the things we have to be grateful for.

Cognitive reappraisal

Practice shifting our negative emotions slowly to something less negative. Especially if due to something that was out of your hands.

Self-Acceptance

Psychology Today discusses how we should practice self-acceptance and embrace all our strengths and weaknesses. This is what truly makes us unique in who we are.

Get outside

As already mentioned… the outdoors and nature can metaphorically transfer peace onto you.

Treat yourself like a friend

This is advice I tend to give out often. And The New York Times agrees, treat yourself like a friend, use the same advice you would give to someone who was feeling down. Treat yourself with kindness, when feeling blue, grab a blanket and a hot drink and curl up with Netflix or a good book. Seriously this works, I’ve tried it!

Happiness doesn’t have to be waiting for that perfect backpack to go for an 8km hike, or for the perfect partner to go hiking with. Happiness can be a simple walk in the woods with a secondhand backpack and a lunchbox with your favourite snacks.

We can wait to shout our happiness from the summit of Everest, (although we won’t have the physical or lung capacity to do so)… or we can choose to go for a walk in nature, read a book, or take up a new hobby to find the simplicity of that same happiness.

I’ve made my choice time and time again, maybe I’m a simple person, but I want to pass this ‘simplicity’ on to others.

I hope by reading this, even just one person will sit back and say “hey… I can be happy like that too”.

It is possible.

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Also written by Lily Lum: