The Secret to Obtaining Euphoria

“You are the most talented, most interesting, and most extraordinary person in the universe. And you are capable of amazing things because you are the special.” At exactly 8:36 p.m. I was eating a chocolate chip cookie, and scrolling through TikTok when I encountered my daily dose of hopecore and ran into this heartwarming quote from The Lego Movie. In Siddhartha, Siddhartha experiences spiritual euphoria through the enlightenment of the river and Vasudeva. Siddhartha’s euphoric state developed from pretty significant experiences in his life. But I think euphoria comes from everyday little things, just like these encouraging words from Emmet in The Lego Movie.

Scene from The Lego Movie

You don’t have to go through a whole spiritual journey in order to obtain euphoria. Experiencing euphoria can come from family and friends around you, listening to music, sneaking into the Orchestra Gala without any tickets, or having A LOT of fun on a Saturday night (specifically Saturday February 3rd…Ashish). It’s really just the simple things in life that make us happy. And sometimes, these things are taken for granted or not easily recognizable. For me, getting to see Koda everyday after 2nd hour brings me euphoria. Even though nobody wants to go with me to visit her, I still find happiness in seeing her energetic personality and giving her belly rubs. These two minutes of petting Koda bring me enjoyment and happiness that sticks with me for the rest of my day.

Going back to The Lego Movie, one of the primary causes of euphoria is the words from our friends and family. Even the smallest compliments or words of encouragement provide a significant mood boost that everyone needs in their life. Positive words from the people around us help alleviate the bad thoughts and provide us with a feeling of content and peace. For example, Owen always gives me kind words of encouragement everyday. In the moment, these words might just seem like any other words, but ultimately, the kind things he says spreads positivity and has an impact on my happiness. Many words we hear are often ignored or forgotten. But words of kindness and positivity stick with us for a long time. And I know the world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, but sometimes we just need a little bit of happiness in our lives.