I spent a significant amount of time in Russia in late 90s. At the time the economic situation was quite bad for most - leaving many to wonder how to provide th

I spent a significant amount of time in Russia in late 90s. At the time the economic situation was quite bad for most - leaving many to wonder how to provide the most basic essentials for themselves and their families. I learned that in these situations that if basic human needs are not being met, it is very hard for someone to experience "happiness". Two things I observed: - Happiness and peace are not the same thing. Many of the good people I talked to would not claim any measure of happiness. But many had hope that tomorrow would be better, and gratitude for what they did have (which most often revolved around their relationships with others). This brought an element of "peace" that perhaps the future would be better than the present in spite of very difficult circumstances. - At that time in my life, my own resources were quite limited but I had no worry that I would go hungry or cold. I didn't have a mountain of money, truckloads of food or all the answers. But I could see that my efforts to show sincere concern for people, to be a friend with a soft shoulder, to help with basic necessities as I was able, etc. helped these individuals increase their own hope, gratitude and peace. And that brought me tremendous happiness. I'm not in a great position to tell someone else what to do to be happy. But I can assert from my own experience that I receive much happiness when I step out of myself and involve myself in things that help lighten the load of others. I've also tried to distinguish between "pleasure" and "happiness". I think most of us have seen examples of people that have lives full of pleasure but devoid of happiness, and yet we still believe that our own happiness is the sum of self-directed pleasure. It seems to me that pleasure can contribute to happiness, but the foundation of happiness must be something more substantial.