Ridgewood High School graduates urged to earn happiness
JUNE 25, 2014 LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 2014, 6:29 PM
BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
Facing a sea of red roses and white dresses covered in sparkling details, Ridgewood High School (RHS) Principal Tom Gorman told the Class of 2014 that life is not a fairytale, with one easy way to happiness.
“Happiness is earned,” he said. “It is not a system based on awards and rewards, based solely on wants. When pursuing happiness, many times there are no raises, promotions or awards.”
As he spoke to about 400 students and several hundred more in attendance at Tuesday’s graduation, the principal’s point was that in American culture “happiness as a pursuit is strongly encouraged” – yet how to get there can be unclear.
Promising students that they will not find happiness simply through professional success or “by pursuing money, material possessions or fame” (though they may be fortunate enough to acquire those things), he invoked the struggle of Nelson Mandela and the research of Dan Buettner, who wrote “Thrive,” a book focusing on happiness.
Mandela’s 27-year imprisonment while fighting against apartheid exemplified the importance of “delayed gratification,” helping others, and having faith in something larger than oneself. And Buettner’s work illustrated that true happiness has many components.
Buettner, Gorman said, found that 40 percent of happiness is related to one’s daily thoughts and actions. Buettner’s research on “true happiness,” Gorman observed, included several key themes: the development of a caring group of healthy friends; working at meaningful jobs; engaging in enriching hobbies; staying in reasonable shape; volunteering one’s time and services; and belonging to a faith-based community.
“He also found that true happiness involves the pursuit of worthy goals,” Gorman said. “You need to believe in something bigger than yourself, something that transcends you. This gives hope and we cannot live without faith, love, and especially hope.”
Gorman told students to “remember you are not alone in your pursuit of happiness, and be true to yourself and others. And may you all live happily ever after.”
On Wednesday, the principal said he got his inspiration for the speech from a magazine article.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/ridgewood-high-school-graduates-urged-to-earn-happiness-1.1041312#sthash.xpY66TuE.dpuf
It was a beautiful evening and a wonderful Graduation ceremony. Congratulations to all of the Seniors and congratulations and thank you to all of the teachers, coaches, advisors, and administrators that helped all of them complete their time at RHS.
We are all soooo happy.
#1 – don’t you think you might want to include PARENTS in that list of helpers? I know I worked very hard to ensure that my kids succeeded, in their own ways, at RHS.
And “helped them complete their time at RHS” . . . makes them sound like they are in prison.