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We are living with the most conveniences ever available in history yet continue to be one of the most unhappy populations in the world. We are mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally unwell. We have mastered working ourselves to insanity, sacrificing sleep for sunrise stress, and overcompensating for holes in our hearts. As a community we strive for the most elusive feeling – happiness.
We think we know what will achieve this feeling, but we are extraordinarily wrong. We know that happiness is not found in a relationship, in money, in a career, in a shop, or in a bottle yet we continue to pursue it in those places; like children learning not to touch a hot plate. In our culture, it makes sense to seek externally for satisfaction in status and with the rise of social media, our inundation with idealistic lives leaves us feeling inadequate daily.
Happiness is not as elusive as the fountain of youth; it is embedded in each moment of life should we choose to see it. Since we have been so far from this joy, we need to cultivate it as a practice. We need to identify the small acts that allow us to feel and recognize the happiness we already have. This is counterintuitive to our natural instincts in todays modern world. We are taught to be strong instead of vulnerable, we are taught to suppress instead of feel, we are taught to envy instead of love.At Via we believe in cultivating the behaviors that allow us to feel joy in everyday moments. We believe that small acts have a ripple effect in your life, your network, and your community. Most of all, we believe that these acts are difficult to implement without support.
