Happiness Walker Asks What Truly Matters

I’ve always wanted to walk across the country. Now, I’ve met someone who’s actually done it—in the name of happiness.

I will probably never walk across the country, but I did drive it solo once on Route 66—so I have that at least. My big walk, if I had ever done it, would have been merely for the sake of exploration, curiosity, and to prove to myself that I could do it.

My adventures these days are often found through the Internet, usually looking for some tidbit of positive news to share on my Twitter account. It might have been this activity, or a mutual admiration of the legendary Peace Pilgrim, that made me aware of Paula Francis, who has been walking the country to explore the topic of happiness. I’ve been following her journey on Facebook for a year or so.

Paula is the president and happiness walker at Gross National Happiness USA, a non-profit dedicated toward sustainable happiness and wellbeing in the United States. The organization is modeled on principals first developed in Bhutan, which places great value on the sense of well-being in its citizens. In 2012, the United Nations recognized the relevance of gross national happiness and wellbeing worldwide. The Happiness Walk USA, which Paula has trekked over the past seven years, is an outreach project of Gross National Happiness USA. Paula gathers and shares stories of happiness central to what really matters in life.

“What truly matters?” Paula Francis asks during interviews of her hosts—and anyone she meets along the way.

My husband and I had the opportunity to explore that topic with Paula and her friend Sue (Suzanne Ganzak Carnill). We hosted them when they passed through northwest Pennsylvania in late September. It was endearing to hear Jim talk about what really matters to him. We are quite the same in this regard. We both believe that relationships matter much more than material possessions. Over the course of our marriage, we have happily passed up opportunities that would have compromised our family quality.

We also talked about the current world condition and whether or not we have any hope for it. Jim is the eternal optimist, and I am quite the opposite. However, the other day as I drove across our town, I found evidence that even in these days of computers, automation, and impersonal phone menus, people are still creating. Ingenuity and creativity are innate, and even when governments of the past tried to discourage creativity, people still found a way to express themselves. That realization gave me new hope for the future.

In addition to being an optimist, my husband is a happy person. When we were young, it used to bother me greatly when I’d ask him what his most-important goal was, and he would say, “to be happy.” I thought that was so trite, but as the years have passed, I have realized the value of happiness more and more. Unfortunately, my own default is not set to happy. I can be moody and I often have to talk myself out of those moods or wait for them to pass. It’s rarely material things that will change my mindset. The relationships in my life bring me great joy, but the rest is up to me and my own thinking. Peace Pilgrim, whom I mentioned earlier, believed that our thoughts have a direct effect on our happiness. A few months ago, I pulled seven of her quotes and created a blog about them called Seven Peace Pilgrim Quotes on the Power of Thought

We could have talked to Paula and Sue all night, but they had to put their sneakers on in the morning. Sue was soon heading back to her home, and for Paula, the end of the trail is in sight. Paula’s route started in Vermont seven years ago and although she’s taken pauses during these years, the walk is her passion. From Vermont, her route dipped down into Florida and continued across the southern United States to California. Then, she walked all the way up to Seattle and down to Salt Lake City. She continued eastward across the Midwest, and when she made it to Ohio, I commented on her Facebook post, telling her I was in northwest Pennsylvania if she needed anything.

I was delighted when Paula responded that they could use a place to stay for a night, and that’s how she, and her friend Sue, who has accompanied her six different times during the years, came to join us for dinner and spend the night. They left early the next morning, and I kept my phone close all day, because the weather was supposed to be foul, and we told them that they were more than welcome to spend another night. Thankfully for them, the sun shone on Paula and Sue that day.

Paula plans to celebrate the conclusion of her walk on November 2 in Boston, but because she will be just a hundred or so miles short of 10,000, she will continue north until she hits that milestone.

I’m so intrigued to see what comes of Paula’s research. She’d like to write a book and produce a documentary.  From what Paula shared with us, I think many people will be surprised that we all have a lot in common when it comes to what truly matters. Sometimes, we just need to be reminded.