Happy Place

A friend posted her status on FB asking the question, “If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would it be?” Another way of asking this question might be, “where’s your ‘happy place’?”



We each have that ‘happy place’ inside - be it a state of mind or a place we can picture in our heads – that we can go to in order to find calm, joy, peace and rest. I’ve heard it defined as a mental vacation spot or mental escape.


Stressful day? Bored out of your skull? Pressured? Panic? In turmoil? Tension filled?


Go to your ‘happy place’. It’s a personal place – a beach, a quiet wooded spot near a stream, a wildflower filled field, a snow covered pine forest, or a moment in time revisited. Sometimes it not just a visualization but also mentally perceiving sensations – the warmth of the sun on the skin, a breeze flowing, the coolness of rain droplets, sweet aromas (floral, baked goods, a smell particular to a place) or sounds that drift by (laughter, waves coming in, birds singing, wind whispering).


Close your eyes. Relax. Breathe. See it. Feel it. Smell it. You’re there.


I think there is an innate need in each of us for a Happy Place. That need is physical, emotional and spiritual. We each need the balance, calm, smiles and tranquility that come from going to the happy place.


I have a secret about happy places. I’ve discovered a way to experience more than ‘happy’ in my places. I don’t go there alone. When I go to my happy place, I’m accepting an invitation – “…Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31b). At some point of being in my Happy Place, I breathe and let God’s presence wash over me. I feel engulfed by love (1 John 4:8b – God is love).


Rest becomes restoration.


Psalm 23:3 He restores my soul.