The Man Who Didn't Know He Was Happy
Short story about happiness that does not wait for life to be perfect.
On the day he received the promotion he had waited seven years for, Eitan discovered he wasn't happy.
He sat in his new office on the twenty-eighth floor, facing an enormous window that looked out over all of Tel Aviv.
His salary had doubled. His name was on the door. Everyone had sent their congratulations.
And yet, something was missing.
“I probably need a holiday,” he thought.
He booked a week at a luxury hotel in Greece.
On the third day of his holiday, sitting by the sea, he found himself checking his emails.
“Even here, I can't seem to be happy,” he muttered.
Beside him sat an older man, drawing something in the sand with his finger.
“What are you looking for?” the man asked.
“Happiness, I suppose.”
“And how will you know you've found it?”
Eitan thought for a moment.
“When I feel that nothing is missing.”
The man smiled and drew a circle in the sand.
“And what's missing from this circle?”
“Nothing. It's whole.”
The man erased a small part of the circle.
“And now?”
“Now it isn't whole.”
A small wave came in and washed the entire drawing away.
“And now?” the man asked.
Eitan laughed.
“Now there isn't even a circle.”
The man looked at the sea.
“Strange,” he said. “The sea doesn't seem troubled.”
Eitan said nothing.
“Are you telling me we shouldn't want anything?”
“No,” the man replied. “I want things too. Right now, for instance, I'd like an ice cream.”
Eitan burst out laughing.
“So what's the difference between us?”
The man stood up and brushed the sand from his trousers.
“I want an ice cream. You want to reach the day when you won't want ice cream anymore.”
He walked away toward the promenade.
Eitan stayed where he was.
For the first time in years, he wasn't trying to work out what was missing.
He felt the sun on his face, the salty breeze, and the sand between his toes.
A few minutes later, he got up and went to buy an ice cream.
When he reached the stand, he saw the older man sitting on a bench.
“Well,” Eitan asked, “did you get your ice cream?”
“No,” the man replied.
“Why not?”
“They're out of pistachio.”
“So are you disappointed?”
“A little,” the man said with a smile.
“What will you do now?”
The man pointed to the sea.
“I suppose I'll sit here and be disappointed with a beautiful view.”
Eitan sat down beside him.
And they both laughed.
Not because everything was perfect. But because, for a moment, nothing had to be.
A Zen Question to Carry
If you stopped searching for the moment when nothing is missing, what would be missing from this moment?
Not every question needs an answer. Sometimes, carrying it is enough.
Zen wisdom
An original contemporary fictional story inspired by Zen philosophy. Eitan and the older man are literary characters; neither the story nor its Zen question is a traditional koan or a historical account. The dialogue is not a quotation from a Zen teacher.
Zen invites us to meet the moment as it is, not only as we wish it to be. Desire and disappointment can belong to that moment too, without turning it into a failure.
The story does not suggest we should stop wanting ice cream, success or change. It explores the quiet demand that life become perfect before we allow ourselves to live it. We can be disappointed that the pistachio has run out, and still feel the breeze and laugh with someone beside us.
Questions & answers
+What is the message of "The Man Who Didn't Know He Was Happy"?
The story explores wanting and feeling disappointed without making happiness depend on a perfect life. It does not call for eliminating all desire.
+Is this a true story?
An original contemporary fictional story inspired by Zen philosophy. Eitan and the older man are literary characters; neither the story nor its Zen question is a traditional koan or a historical account. The dialogue is not a quotation from a Zen teacher.
+Which wisdom tradition inspired this story?
Zen — Zen wisdom. Direct pointing, before thinking.
What imperfect moment in your life still deserves your attention?
