How to get, and stay, happy

Readers share what makes them smile,

Fresh eyes

Blair Irwin is a first-time mom, and what makes her happy is her 1-yearold son, Cole. Spending time with him allows her to “see the world again through fresh eyes,” she said. She believes the key to happiness is staying positive and “reacting with love” to every experience. “Once you’re nice to somebody and you treat them with love and respect, then they feel that, and they pass it on because their lives are better. It’s just this snowball effect.”

Going the distance

“It’s the simple things in life that make you happy,” said Blanche Claasen-Hoskins, who was visiting Toronto from South Africa. “Like enjoying a good cup of coffee, enjoying the smell of fresh flowers or clean linen.” Her simple pleasure is running. Despite being in her late 50s, she jogs 30 kilometres a week. “It’s the endorphins,” she said.

Peace of mind

Given her first name, Joy Daymond, 77, should know a thing or two about happiness. “My parents must have been awfully glad when I was born,” she joked. For her, the key to happiness is “peace of mind,” which the former food bank worker finds through helping others and spending time with her daughters and grandchildren. “I don’t think it’s things that make you happy, it’s how you are inside,” she said.

Dad’s delight

The happiest Graham Qually can remember being was earlier this year when his baby daughter, Everlie, said her first word: “Dada.” The 33-year-old always wanted to have kids, but wasn’t prepared for how much joy his daughter would bring him. “She makes me laugh more than anything. Everything she does. The faces she makes, the sounds she makes,” he said. “I didn’t know it would be this fantastic.”

Tied together

Sebastian Fu, 28, and his girlfriend, Sonia Duda, 25, are both hardworking university students. What makes them happy is going home at the end of the day and leaving their mental baggage at the door. Sonia said she was happiest when she was a child, a feeling she can almost recapture when she’s with her nine-year-old brother. Sebastian said the key to happiness is “being with Sonia, and trying to achieve our objectives as a couple.”