Truck stops have always fascinated me. They are bright lit meccas sprinkled along a journey, guaranteed to harbor a limitless assortment of gums, snacks, drinks, and travel sized toiletries. While I love truck stops, I don’t often have high proverbial expectations for them as a site for inspiration, but today was different.
Somewhere in hick-ville of Hanover County, sandwiched between I-95 and Route 1, I stopped for a bathroom break at a mega struck stop. Weaving my way with purpose through fifteen truckers playing pool to get to the Ladies’ Room, I stopped short as I entered the restroom to find a painted sign that read: Happiness is what you think it is. The bathroom was filled with framed quotes, fake flower bouquets, and nice soaps: not your typical truck stop bathroom to say the least.
Happiness is what you think it is. We each get to define what happy is to us, but we will never be happy unless we know what exactly it is that we want. Moreover, happiness (and beauty) can strike in the most unlikely of places, like my truck stop. If you don’t yet know what it is that makes you happy, then it’s time to explore the world outside of your comfort zone a little bit. If you know what happiness is to you and are not pursuing it, now is the time to change that.