Finding Therapy with the Hunt for Happiness Scavenger Hunt Challenge

Sprinkling in these feel-good challenges in my Medium page brings me joy and happiness. Answering the fun questions is a form of therapy and journaling for me.✍

Here we go with the final challenge of my mostly stress-free summer…🏖

1. Who is a friend or family member that makes you smile, and why? One of my best friends is 35 years older than me and has the kind of humor where sometimes you can’t tell if he’s joking. Well, other people can’t tell. But I can tell. And he just makes me laugh all the time with one-liners about real life irony.😂

2. What’s your favorite song that brings a smile to your face? I’m not sure I have a favorite song but usually when a 90s hit comes on, it brings a smile to my face. It seems that so many of them are popular with my generation as well as those after me because Tik Tok sounds have made popularized them again.🎵

3. Do you have a favorite pet or animal that fills your heart with love? My favorite pet would be a dog from my childhood as memories of her bring me back to a time of stress-free, endless days of sunny summer fun in the safe outdoors riding bikes and jumping rope with my cousin and neighbor. There is no going back and kids these days will not experience this type of carefree enjoyment. No worries of summer school, camps, social media, all-too-competitive sports, inflation, allergies, pandemics, global warming, time. We had no idea what time it was from the moment we rose until the sun went down. It was a beautiful many years.🐶

4. What’s your favorite quote that makes you feel good? Jay-Z’s “May the best of your todays be the worst of your tomorrows” is my absolute favorite quote of all time. It is kind, optimistic, ambitious and can be said to anyone at any time no matter how good or bad life seems. Jay-Z’s lyrics are littered with memorable and noteworthy quotes, but this one has always stuck with me.🎤

5. What’s your favorite way to spend a day off? Quietly enjoying the sunshine with my favorite people.☀️

6. When is a time that a stranger shared a kindness with you? In the area that I live in, I try my best to stay away from strangers. However, when on vacation, my cousin’s friend who is a total stranger to me, let us borrow a bunch of summer equipment at no charge. I don’t know if he qualifies as a stranger since he is technically a “friend of a friend” but in any case, he was generous and kind and accommodating when he didn’t need to be.🎀

7. What is your favorite book or movie that brings you joy when you read or watch it? Who doesn’t love “Dirty Dancing” and Patrick Swayze! (Note: the exclamation point instead of question mark is intentional.) It’s a feel-good movie with fun dancing, great acting, and good music. It takes place during my favorite season — summer! And its setting is a resort country club with exciting activities and shows. I watch “Dirty Dancing” any chance I get! I wish it had a bit more ethnic diversity but that’s beside the point. Love that movie! R.I.P. Patrick Swayze.🕺

8. What’s your favorite food? Hands down — sashimi! I love it, I just love it. I love how it tastes, the health benefits, the culture it comes from, how it’s presented, the colors. My favorites are salmon, tuna, and white fish. I love dipping them in a perfect mix of a little soy sauce and a lot of wasabi. And I love enjoying sashimi with my favorite utensils — chopsticks!🍣

9. What is something you’ve done recently that makes you proud? I helped with a charity game that raised a lot of money for a local center for seniors with food insecurities. Almost anything that I am proud of myself for is tied to some kind of volunteer work or donation. There is nothing better than the feeling of gifting to others and giving back to the community. I hope to inspire others to do the same. Many people in this world are hungry every day and if I have the means to help alleviate some of the hunger, I will.🌎

10. What’s a goal that you’re working towards? Work optional. I am most definitely and positively working toward a goal of not having to work anymore. My Instagram page and a lot of my Medium page are dedicated to exactly this — holding myself accountable to my efforts toward financial independence and even more happiness and peace. However, I am not losing sight of the everyday goal to live happily even while on my journey towards financial independence and early retirement.💰

11. What is your favorite smell? Clean. The smell of clean. The smell of my favorite soaps, laundry detergent, deodorant. Things with a pleasant but not overpowering scent and that represent cleanliness.🧼

12. What color makes you feel happy? Green! Green days in the stock market. Green lights. Green leaves. Green tea. Green beans. Wasabi.💚

13. Over the past week, what is something that brought you a moment of joy? Celebrating a relative’s birthday with my closest loved ones at a nice quiet restaurant. No worries. Good food. Hot water. Sun shining outside. Everyone in a happy mood and smiles all around.💝

Thank you for taking a moment of your time to read my answers. If you have a chance, I highly recommend that you take part in this challenge. It is so fun and easy and pleasant! Please tag me if you do so that I may share in your delight.🙏🏼

Wishing you the best day ever!⭐

Thank you to Trisha Faye for this Good Vibes Club challenge. And thank you to Sherry Atkinson because her story also inspired me to do this.👑

Thank you for reading and engaging! I appreciate it.