H A P P I N E S S
Happiness is a poem by Emily Perkins
Bissell, an American social
worker and activist (May 31, 1861-March
8, 1948) who wrote under the pseudonym Priscilla Leonard.
She was born in Wilmington, Delaware, where , at very young
age, she became famous for establishing in the city its first public
kindergarten and for introducing in the
state the child labour laws. According to her biographers, in 1883 , she founded an organization,
currently known as the West End Neighbourhood House to render social services
to German families and immigrant Irish of Wilmington.
HAPPINESS is one of her best- known inspirational poems. It reads as
follows:
HAPPINESS is like a crystal
Fair and exquisite and clear,
Broken in a million pieces
Shattered, scattered far and near.
Now and then along life’s pathway,
Lo! Some shining fragments fall;
But there are so many pieces
No one ever finds them all.
You may find a bit of beauty,
Or an honest share of wealth,
While another just beside you
Gathers honor, love or health.
Vain to choose or grasp unduly,
Broken is the perfect ball;
And there are so many pieces
No one ever finds them all.
Yet the wise as on they journey
Treasure every fragment clear,
Fit them as they may together,
Imaging the shattered sphere,
Learning ever to be thankful
Though their share of it is small;
For it has so many pieces
No one ever finds them all.
Happiness,
which is the theme of this poem, has no definite meaning. It is lexically described as cheerfulness,
high spirits, carefreeness, euphoria, ecstasy, merriment and bliss. There are
many more descriptions. For example, a
happy man is expected to be a pleased,
delighted, gratified, satisfied , fortunate or
contented man. On the basis of
such expectation, some social scientists and philosophers assert that the
existence of happiness is an illusion; the reality is its ceaseless pursuit.
All the states of happiness listed above
are transitory. They go on changing. AS the English novelist Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) said happiness is an
occasional episode in a general drama of pain;
and American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-64) says: “Happiness in
this world , when it comes, comes incidentally,--Make it the object of pursuit, and it leads us a
wild-goose chase, and is never attained.
Priscilla Leonard’s poem begins like
this:
Happiness is like a crystal,
Fair and
exquisite and clear,
Broken in a
million pieces,
Shattered,
scattered far and near.
Now and then
along life’s pathway,
Lo! Some
shining fragments fall,
But there
are so many pieces
No one ever
finds them all.
English biographer John Aiken
(1747-1822) echoes this idea in these
words: The sunshine of life is made up
of very little beams that are bright all the time.” Add to this the words of
John Porter, American authoress (Born 1960): “Happiness is a sunbeam which may
pass through a thousand bosoms without losing a particle of its original ray;
nay, when it strikes on a kindred heart, like the converged light or a mirror,
it reflects itself with redoubled brightness. It is not perfected till it is
shared. “
For Priscilla happiness is a
collective noun comparable to a crystal ball which is not only blear but also
fair and exquisite. In its shattered and
scattered shape, one can see its million pieces along life’s pathway. These
pieces symbolise various sources of happiness like beauty, love, honour, health
and wealth and many more. However, no
human being can collect all these pieces and make them his own exclusive
share. The pieces of this ball are meant
to be shared by the entire humanity.
The metaphor of crystal ball selected
by Priscilla has spiritual significance.
Whereas the crystal ball is used to make
predictions, it also registers its
presence on many pious occasions like
weddings and sacred celebrations. It is therefore a divine gift for which man
should be readily grateful. What Priscilla intends to say is that health and
happiness, love and beauty, honour and fame are bestowed by God , in whatever
measure, and it is the religious duty of
man to express his gratitude to God. The
wise, says she, treasure every fragment clear…learning ever to be thankful,
though their share of it is small, for it has so many pieces no one ever finds
them all.
Finally, the following words of French
philosopher, Blaise Pascal (1623-63): ”Happiness is neither within us only, or
without us, it is the union of ourselves with God.“
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3rd August 2021 G.
R. Kanwal
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