This past week, I lived with my toes in the sand and the sand in between my fingers. As cliche as that sounds, this past week I was the happiest I had been in a while. As my stomach jumped with each wave the boat ran over and the sun was beating down on my white as sand skin, I realized something about my happiness: it was always there.

This realization could have been because it was my 16th birthday and school work seemed lightyears away, but happiness seemed to surround me everywhere I looked, even the days and nights following my trip to Florida.

I had always thought that when I found my true happiness, I would be fifty with kids and a loving husband, but instead, I realized I had it ever since I was a kid. Sitting on that boat many million miles away from home, I realized I had all the keys to happiness at my fingertips: a loving family, multiple friends who truly care about me, thousands of educational opportunities, and a beautiful, smiling home.

The thing I realized most is that I do not think there is a true time when you can say your life is complete because as a young 16-year-old girl, I think my life is already complete, but there is so much more to come than I could ever predict.

A teacher once gave me a presentation on how he hoped we would all find our happiness one day. Ever since I’ve been thinking about if I had found mine or when I was going to, but to be honest, I think we have all already found it.

I think that what we all strive to have in life is right there in front of us. Maybe it is easier to see if a smiling sea is at our toes or just after retiring, but if you live your life waiting for the moment of true happiness, are you really living?

Although my definition of happiness may change over the years, and at times, I might even think it is gone, I think that my happiness will always be there waiting to be seen.

Most people probably think that moment will occur at some spontaneous time, but it won’t.

All the happiness you could ever possibly want is right there. All you have to do is open your eyes.