Happiness is like a pebble¹（卵石） dropped into a pool to set in motion an ever-widening circle of ripples². As Stevenson has said, being happy is a duty.

 

There is no exact definition of the word happiness. Happy people are happy for all sorts of reasons. The key is not wealth or physical well-being³, since we find beggars, invalids⁴ and so-called failures, who are extremely happy.

 

Being happy is a sort of unexpected dividend（红利，股息）. But staying happy is an accomplishment⁵, a triumph of soul and character. It is not selfish to strive for it. It is, indeed, a duty to ourselves and others.

 

Being unhappy is like an infectious disease. It causes people to shrink away from the sufferer. He soon finds himself alone, miserable⁶ and embittered⁷. There is, however, a cure so simple as to seem, at first glance, ridiculous; if you don't feel happy, pretend to be!

 

It works. Before long you will find that instead of repelling⁸（击退，抵制） people, you attract them. You discover how deeply rewarding it is to be the center of wider and wider circles of good will.

 

Then the make-believe becomes a reality. You possess the secret of peace of mind, and can forget yourself in being of service to others.

 

Being happy, once it is realized as a duty and established as a habit, opens doors into unimaginable gardens thronged⁹ with grateful friends.

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