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Healthy Aging By Sharon Johnson Happiness for some seniors is in the cards Studies of older Americans find that one of the best predictors of happiness is whether a person considers his or her life to have purpose. Without a clearly defined purpose, seven out of 10 individuals feel unsettled about their lives. With a purpose, almost seven in 10 feel satisfied. This finding evolves from research done at the University of California in 1996. I did not come upon it via Internet exploration, or through my own considerations. It happened to me in a Hallmark store - the people who sell Beanie Babies and greeting cards. These folks give bonuses if you show a little identification card when you make a purchase. I have noticed that the people shopping in Hallmark stores are, well, not young. I go to Hallmark stores with my lovely and not-young mother. She has a singular purpose. She is doing one of her favorite things: card shopping. She is intentional about maintaining her network of friends across the country, especially right now, when she feels people may be in need of cheering. To do so, she spends a lot of her disposable income on greeting cards. And she prefers to send Hallmark cards. (Long ago, the company should have commandeered her for their promotions.) As my mother slowly wanders about the little store we have located in her neighborhood, I wander, too. Keeping an eye on her fatigue level and mindful of our date with a mocha, I use the moment to browse. I find a glossy, hold-in-one-hand book, "The 100 Simple Secrets of Happy People." I think it caught my eye because the author, David Niven, had the same name as one of my mother's favorite actors. Or maybe I was drawn to the subtitle, "What Scientists Have Learned and How You Can Use It." (After all, I was in a Hallmark store.) On quick read, I find that Niven makes a compelling research-based case about happiness. This little book draws from more than 100 studies outlining what it takes to achieve happiness. (I know. I know. The real answer to happiness does not come from a book.) There are some worth-remembering points in this little card-store offering, however. The critical importance of having a purpose in life is reiterated in several forms. Rekindling past relationships and constantly cultivating new ones is heavily touted. The book says what I often see in the research: Social networks keep us healthy in times of stress. The final chapter is titled, "What Does it All Mean, You Decide." It asserts that the effects of "good" and "bad" events quickly fade. Happiness is not drawn from a sum of life events, but what we make of those events. Common-sense assertion, I suppose, yet strangely comforting to me in these troubled times. Browsing done, I seek out my mother. Her purpose for the day realized, she is perched on a folding chair next to the cash register, a bulging package of greeting cards in her arms. She is chatting (networking) with the clerk and smiling - happily. So is the clerk. Sharon Johnson is an assistant professor in family and community development at OSU Extension and a member of the Senior Advisory Council. Reach her at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.