WE ASKED passers-by in Zagreb if they were happy. Here is what they answered us.
“I’m surrounded by good people, I’m happy”
The girls we came across told us that they are happy with family, as well as friends, but also travel. “Well, I think I am. Primarily because of my friends, family. I think I have a good chance for life. I’m studying. I mean, I live in Croatia. I know it can be a little bad, a little good, but right now it’s good for me. I have a lot of life opportunity,” said one girl. “Me too. I’m surrounded by good people, I’m happy. Here, let’s go for pancakes”; added another girl next to her.
“We like to travel, especially the two of us. We have a lot of friends in other countries as well. We were just a little bit in Spain, Italy and so on,” said the first girl and revealed what she enjoys most about traveling. “Meeting other people. Then you kind of have a different perspective on things,” she claims.
“Little things make me happy”
The young man and girl we stopped told us that they were happy and revealed what makes them happy. “Little things. When I get home and go to bed. At my friend’s house, his eyes make me happy”; said the girl. The young man next to her replied that her eyes made him happy. We asked them if they plan for happiness, that is, if they let the day take them in a certain direction, or as soon as they wake up, they have a plan to spend their time nicely.
“I think that happiness has to happen by itself, it can’t really be planned because it’s spontaneous and that’s why it’s beautiful,” she added. “I mostly like to leave my time for happiness later in the day because I’m a morning person and I get everything done in the morning. Afternoon and evening are time for me and for her,” said the young man.
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“I don’t understand the concept of happiness”
One young man we spoke to said that he does not fully understand the concept of happiness. “Neither happy nor unhappy. I don’t really understand the concept of happiness. I don’t think about it, completely neutral. It can be neither good nor bad”, claims the young man, so we asked him if this means that it is a matter of complete nihilism.
“I wouldn’t say it’s nihilism, maybe complete objectivity. Without the concept of happiness in general. It’s interesting because you have the possibility of objective-analytical observation,” said the young man who we asked how he came to a conclusion in this thinking. “Most often, I guess, it’s what a person deals with. So there are always certain interests. I wouldn’t say that they necessarily make me happy as much as they interest me,” he answered.
“I’m happy with good company or a drink”
The girl we spoke with revealed that she enjoys good company or a drink. “Right now I’m happy because I’m waiting for my sister to come from Dubrovnik. I came from Ljubljana and I’m waiting to see her after a long time. There are three of us, and then there was always some togetherness. I’m always happy when I somehow have a day planned. When I know roughly what I have plans, some good company or a drink at the end of the day is always a great option and I’m always in a good mood afterwards. I drink a lot in Slovenia – we say spritzer, but it’s actually gemišt,” the girl claims.
“I’m happy because I’m alive and healthy”
The woman we stopped claims that she is happy because she is healthy and alive. “I’m happy because I’m alive, healthy and my family is healthy and alive. I’m satisfied. My children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, family make me happy the most. I love when we’re all together, when we celebrate something,” said the woman, adding that she likes to walk . “I also have a small garden. I deal with flowers, vegetable gardening and so on,” she said. “Thank God that I am healthy and alive and that I can get up and do my duties, my work. Cooking, cleaning and so on,” she concluded.
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