In 2012 Denmark took the top spot in the United Nation’s first ever World Happiness
Report, followed by Finland, Norway and the Netherlands. Last year, again,
it turned out Danes are the happiest people in the world. How is it possible
that in countries where it is cold and humid most of the time, people are the
happiest? Hygge, the Scandinavian country’s latest gift to the
world, may be the answer.
Hygge is the
Danish ritual of enjoying life’s simple pleasures. There is no direct
translation for this word (though “cozy” comes close), because it is often
described as more of a feeling than a word. Oxford Dictionaries
shortlisted hygge as one of their Words of the Year 2016. The word
derives from a sixteenth-century Norwegian term, hugga, meaning “to
comfort” or “to console”. It’s basically a way to embrace all things cozy,
warm, and restorative.
If you are
curious how to pronounce hygge correctly, check out this video:
Danes created hygge because they were trying to survive boredom,
cold, darkness and the feeling of hygge was a way for them to find
moments to celebrate or acknowledge and to break up the day, months or years.
With so many dark and humid days, the simple act of a candle glowing with a cup
of coffee or a home cooked evening meal with friends can make a huge difference
to one’s spirit. Here is a video, where Meik Wiking, author of the international best-seller "The Little Book of Hygge", takes you on a hygge tour of Copenhagen coffee shops, library gardens and wine bars:
Hygge is about enjoying moments, when the ordinary feels
extraordinary. Hygge is being aware of a good moment whether it’s simple or
special. Real hygge
can happen anywhere: in Denmark or in another country, alone, with friends,
family or strangers (Danes prefer to gather in small groups to emphasize the
unity of their inner circles), indoors or outdoors. It is all about the harmony
of our mind and a sense of well-being. Candles, hand-knitted socks or stylish
furniture are there to help us achieve it. To be honest anyone can feel it, even without buying special gadgets. It is all
in our head.
What is your
personal opinion about this trend? Do people in Poland know how to appreciate
little things? Should we learn from Danes?
Sources:
Comments
They have depressing weather so they had to invent someting. I'm depressed when autumn is coming. When sun shows up I feel fantastic. I can do everything and I have energy to do this.
In my opinion we should learn from these countries, but on the other hand I know that's really impossible for Polish people. Here we have a constant rat race. People constantly want more and more and never enough. As a poorly developed country we keep comapring ourselves to the west. So I think we need a lot of time to feel comfortable with our situation and feel carefree.
It's not always easy, but I think that appreciation of little things is worth it :)
Still, happiness is important, and it's nice that such trend exists.
I do try to enjoy little things and pamper myself on a daily basis to make me happy every single moment.
However, I find it difficult when it's raining and cloudy without any sunrays. I suppose it's easier to be pleased when you're among optimistic, self-fulfilled people - and it's not the tendency of polish people. That's why I think we have much to learn from Danes.
I have heard about the research in which Polish people work the most from the people of Europe. In my opinion we are too stressed and we live in too much hurry. We should take the example of Danes and enjoy the little things. Going out of the country is not always a lucky recipe, it all depends on our approach to life.
Each time I was in Denmark, I could feel that people do not rush, they enjoy the time they get to spend with other people.
For example, when we ate with my fiance's friends, we used to switch off the tv and just talk about our day, plans etc.
When the weather was good and sunny, we could go to a park, where suddenly people would come with instruments, so once we started to play together with strangers, just sitting and drinking beer in the park (drinking in public is legal :-) ) and enjoying the hygge atmosphere with strangers as well as friends :-)
I could name many examples, and I totally agree that scandinavian and nordic people are way more into hyggelig life than we are, I think we don't enjoy moments well enough in Poland.
Some of us feel overwhelmed on a daily basis by many every-day small problems, which can spoil effectively one’s mood. Why not turn the tables and enjoy small everyday pleasures? To quote American writer Robert Brault: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things”.
I think we should learn from Dutch people how to be happier. By the way, there isn't more precious thing and goal in our lives than being happy.
But I'm "learning" how to and of course my friends are helping me a lot.
After time, I can say that those little things in many cases are the things that makes you happy the most.
Good article, thanks.