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1:00

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1:03

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to The Plate Show wherever you get

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your podcasts. This

1:40

is But Why, a podcast for

1:42

curious kids from Vermont Public. I'm

1:44

Jane Lindholm. On this

1:46

show, we take questions from kids like

1:48

you, and we find interesting people to

1:50

offer answers. Well, most of the

1:53

time. This time, you're the

1:55

experts. We asked you to

1:57

tell us what makes you happy, and boy

1:59

did you Bond we heard from

2:01

almost two hundred of you. And yes,

2:03

we're going to sit all of you

2:05

into this episode. So sit back, get

2:08

cozy. Maybe grab a hot chocolate or

2:10

a glass of water. It's gonna be

2:12

a long, joyful journey. Here are a

2:14

few of your responses to get us

2:16

started: Pro. Four Zero am

2:19

a user or of annoying the

2:21

movie or something or brings enjoy

2:23

a licensor don't hi my name

2:25

is Die The. I

2:27

am on all. Day.

2:30

I was a sampling solar.

2:33

The. Thing that makes me joy

2:35

and laughter. I'm

2:37

though as size you saw

2:39

it as some peace batista

2:41

saying yes and what may

2:43

seem. Yeah, Kathy flailing legislative

2:46

powers My. Ah

2:49

made some I. Am

2:51

now. Mouse Me

2:54

Hop. Out

2:56

one. A

2:58

Superhero. I. Mean. My.

3:01

Name is blog girl

3:03

I'm five years. oh

3:05

I see Silver Spring,

3:08

Maryland and the saying

3:10

that makes me happy

3:12

is dull. My

3:16

name's often and I am a

3:18

his own. And I

3:20

live. In Washington, D C.

3:23

School. Making. Paper

3:26

Airplanes. And

3:28

families said. Let.

3:31

Me: Nice. Name

3:34

is currently or in ten

3:36

years old. I'm the Filipino

3:38

but I live at Oxford,

3:40

Alabama. What makes me happy

3:42

is. My sandwich. Those.

3:44

Are some excellent joy bringer his

3:46

friends. Now it's making me happy

3:48

just thinking about foster kittens, flowers

3:50

and family. in addition

3:52

to hearing all of the things that bring

3:55

you joy we wanted to talk a little

3:57

bit about what researchers know about happiness so

3:59

we up someone who spends a lot

4:01

of time thinking about how people can feel

4:03

good. Gretchen Rubin, author and

4:06

podcast host of Happier with Gretchen

4:08

Rubin. One day I

4:10

was stuck on a crowded city bus

4:12

in the pouring rain and I was

4:15

very bored and because I didn't have anything

4:17

else to do, I started asking

4:19

myself a very big question, which

4:21

is, what do I want from my

4:23

life? And I thought, well, I

4:26

want to be happy. But I realized, well,

4:28

I'm saying I want to be happy, but

4:30

I don't spend any time thinking about, am

4:32

I happy? Could I be happier? If a

4:36

person wanted to be happier, what would they do?

4:38

Is it even possible to make

4:40

yourself happier? And I

4:42

realized I wanted to know the answers to

4:45

these questions. And it turns

4:47

out that the subject of happiness is

4:49

so huge that I've really been exploring

4:51

it ever since I just sort of go

4:53

deeper and deeper into different aspects of happiness.

4:57

So when we think about how to

4:59

be happier, then, are there

5:02

ways that we can work on finding

5:04

happiness for ourselves, no matter how old

5:06

we are? Yes. One

5:09

secret to happiness, and this is something

5:11

that people thousands of years ago and

5:13

also scientists today agree on, which is

5:15

that we should think about our relationships

5:18

with other people. So how you feel

5:20

about your family, how you feel about

5:22

your friends, how you feel about your

5:24

neighbors, whether there are people that you

5:26

can talk to when you're

5:28

feeling down, whether if you have a secret,

5:31

if there are people you can confide in and

5:33

you know that they will keep your secret. If

5:36

you feel like you're meeting new people

5:38

and kind of sharing things that you're

5:40

interested in with them, these

5:42

are things that make us happier. And so

5:44

if you're thinking about, well, your time, your

5:46

energy, what are you going to do with

5:48

yourself? If you say to yourself,

5:51

well, is that something that's probably going to help

5:53

me meet new friends or be

5:55

better friends with the people I already

5:57

have? That's probably something that is going to be

6:00

boost your happiness. We actually got

6:02

a lot of responses from kids who told

6:04

us my family makes me really happy. My

6:07

name is Lucas. I'm

6:09

five years old and I

6:12

live in Green

6:14

Bay, Wisconsin and

6:16

the thing that brings me joy is

6:19

when I play games with mom. My

6:22

name is Declan. I'm nine years old.

6:25

I live in Austin,

6:27

Texas and what

6:29

makes me happy is my parents.

6:32

My name is Ellis. I

6:34

live in Austin, Texas and what

6:37

makes me happy is when my brother

6:39

is nice to me. Hello, my name

6:41

is Sophia and I

6:43

live in Arlington, Virginia and the thing

6:46

that makes me happy the most is

6:48

my family, especially my little sister

6:50

Alicia. Hi, my name is Bogey and

6:52

I'm five years old. What

6:55

makes me happy is when we

6:57

are at play, Kip and I'm together. My

7:00

name is Kriya. I'm

7:02

five and a half years old and

7:05

I live in New Peg, Minnesota

7:07

and what brings me joy is

7:10

playing with my sister. My

7:13

name is Jordan. I live

7:15

in Hong Kong. I'm turning seven this

7:18

December 12 and what makes

7:20

me happy is when my dad

7:22

plays with me because he always makes me

7:24

laugh. Hi, my

7:26

name is Luna and I

7:28

live in Portland, Oregon. This

7:31

is what makes me happy, friends and

7:33

family. My name

7:36

is Lyla. I'm six years

7:38

old. I live

7:40

in Bourbon, California and

7:42

what makes me happy is a

7:45

snuggle from my parents. When

7:47

I get a kiss from mom, I feel very happy.

7:51

Hello, my name is Joaquin and I

7:53

am nine years old. I live in Santa Fe, New

7:55

Mexico and what brings me joy

7:57

is being with my family. My

8:01

name is Janet.

8:03

I'm 11 years old. I'm

8:05

a terrible in-campus. I

8:08

use my eyes to tap on my computer. My

8:11

family brings me joy. My brother

8:13

Evan is fun. I also like to

8:15

watch my work, especially with you. Hi,

8:20

my name is Hannah. I'm seven

8:22

years old. I live in Coral

8:24

Springs, Florida, and what makes me

8:26

happy is I

8:29

like traveling with my family and playing

8:31

with my friends and going

8:34

to Disneyland. My

8:36

name is Maggie. I'm five years

8:39

old. I'm from Victoria, BC.

8:42

What brings me joy is my mom

8:44

and my dad. Hello,

8:47

my name is Vera. I'm seven years old,

8:50

and I live in Locorónio in the north

8:52

of Spain. And I'm

8:54

going to tell you what makes me happy.

8:57

The first thing is playing with my cousin's

8:59

cat, Phyllis. And the second one

9:01

is being with my

9:04

cousin, Tor. Hi,

9:07

my name is Henry. What brings

9:09

me joy is being with my

9:11

family. Six years old, I live

9:13

in Nova Scotia, Canada. My

9:16

name is Rhyder. I'm in

9:18

Fairfield, Connecticut. And

9:21

my thing makes

9:24

me joy is playing with

9:26

my baby brother. Hi,

9:29

I'm Henry. I live in Stillano,

9:31

Minnesota. I'm seven years old. And

9:33

what makes me happy is my

9:35

family. Hi, Alicia.

9:37

I'm five years old. I live

9:42

in Arlington, Virginia. What

9:44

makes me happy is when

9:46

I'm surrounded by my family.

9:50

My name is Alex. And I'm from

9:52

coming Georgia. I'm 10 years old. And

9:54

something that brings me joy is playing

9:57

video games or spending time with

9:59

my family. with

12:00

my family reading a great book. My name is

12:02

Otto. I'm seven years old. I

12:04

live in West Des Moines, Iowa. And

12:07

something that brings me joy is snuggling

12:10

with my mom and dad. My

12:12

name's Elijah, and I live in

12:14

Florida. What makes me happy

12:17

is hanging out with my family

12:19

and friends. I'm

12:21

Annie. I'm eight years old.

12:24

I live in Indianapolis.

12:27

And it brings me joy when

12:29

I'm riding my bike with my

12:31

mom on a warm fall day.

12:34

Hi, my name is Charlotte, and I'm six

12:36

years old. And I live in North Des

12:38

Moines. What makes me happy is snuggling

12:41

with my parents and playing video

12:43

games with them. My name is

12:46

Quinn. What makes

12:48

me happy is mommy. I'm

12:51

so glad to hear that so many of you enjoy

12:53

being with your family members. It's really

12:55

wonderful to share cuddles, laughs, and playtime

12:57

with the people you love. But

13:00

it's not just family we love. We also love our

13:02

friends. Lots of you sent us

13:04

notes about how your friends make you happy. I'm

13:07

Dominic. I live in Norway. I'm

13:10

seven years old. I like snuggling with

13:12

my friends. Hi, my name

13:15

is Charlie. I'm eight years

13:17

old. And what makes me

13:19

happy is bringing the friends

13:21

and sisters and playing with my dog,

13:23

Indy. My name is Eleanor.

13:25

And I'm five years old. And I

13:27

live in West Australia. I'm

13:30

happy about meeting my new friends. My

13:33

name is Elsa. I live in

13:35

Austin, Texas. I'm five

13:37

and a half. And what

13:39

makes me joy is being with my

13:42

friends, Wyatt. Hi, my name

13:44

is Cindy. I'm a senior here in the

13:46

London, New London, so annoying. And what makes

13:48

me happy is my friend group, CC,

13:50

Katie, Amelia, and Mack. And what also

13:52

makes me happy is my BFF. NamUs,

13:56

we are my kids. We

13:58

are for sure. Oh

14:01

I live in L. What

14:03

I say Pennsylvania. Walk.

14:05

Free choice playing games.

14:07

With friends and family. My name

14:09

is I'm I live in Portland,

14:12

Oregon. I am eight years old

14:14

and what? Makes. Me Happy is

14:16

playing with friends scene and. Twelve

14:20

years old and I'm from

14:22

Philadelphia. And my favorite thing to do

14:24

is is my best friend Men. Hi.

14:26

I'm as the other than. I

14:29

knew me through. My

14:34

new new some to those who

14:36

lives in Seattle and look brings

14:38

me to lose playing with my

14:41

my. My name

14:43

is Simon. And I

14:45

mean auto seven years old

14:47

And or throw these royal.

14:50

Family Hello, I'm Martha Arm

14:53

eight years old or improve

14:55

on his. Lot of things

14:57

that make me happy listen

15:00

to music playing and playing

15:02

video games, the my name

15:04

is a New Over and

15:06

Runners Russia and thirteen years

15:09

old and things that makes

15:11

me happy are listening to

15:13

music and. Working with friends

15:15

and hang out, My

15:17

name. As fast. As

15:20

five years old and.

15:23

Florida on. A

15:26

me on this. Play

15:28

with my friends. My

15:32

home alone for use as

15:35

a rule of law will

15:37

have to always play on

15:40

the right back from My

15:42

name is an. Me

15:44

I mailed families a

15:46

lot and five years

15:48

old And what makes

15:51

me. Half the knees

15:53

playing with my best

15:56

player. by

15:58

yeah i'm saying I'm with Westside

16:01

Pennsylvania and something

16:04

that brings me joy is playing

16:06

with my friend Julia. My name

16:08

is Zoe. I'm 7 years

16:10

old. I live in

16:12

my new BC camp. And

16:15

the thing that makes me happy is

16:17

when I play with

16:19

my friend and talk to my

16:21

friend, Isla, who lives in Calico.

16:25

My name is Tash. I'm 5

16:27

years old. I'm from

16:29

New Mexico. What

16:31

brings me joy is

16:33

going to a fun place with

16:36

some joyful friends.

16:39

My name is Smoni. I live

16:41

in San Francisco. I am

16:43

7 years old. What brings

16:45

me joy is talking to my friends

16:47

and family. Hi, my name is

16:50

Autumn. I live in Arlington, Virginia. I'm 8

16:52

years old. And what makes me happy

16:55

is playing with my little brother and playing

16:57

with my friends. Hi, my

16:59

name is Emma. I live in New Orleans and I'm

17:01

6 years old. And what brings me

17:03

joy is playing with friends and meeting friends.

17:06

My name is Frankie. I come

17:08

from Washington, Tacoma. What

17:10

makes me happy is playing with family

17:13

and friends. I'm Kelly and

17:15

I'm 10 years old and I live

17:17

in Cleveland, Ohio. Something

17:19

that makes me happy is being with

17:22

my friends and family. Gretchen

17:25

Rubin says it makes total sense that being

17:27

with friends or family members would make you

17:29

happy. But she also says each

17:32

of us has to figure out for ourselves what

17:34

brings us joy. Because all of

17:36

us have to figure out what is the

17:38

secret of happiness for ourselves. And

17:41

sometimes people will say, well, there's a right way to

17:43

do it. Or there's a best way to

17:45

do it. But really, all of us

17:47

have to figure that out for ourselves because we're

17:49

all different. And So I

17:51

think all of us have to say, well,

17:53

what kind of person am I? What makes

17:55

me happier? Do I Love playing with my

17:57

dog? Do I like poking around in... In

18:00

my backyard to I love to read

18:02

do I love to make things with

18:04

my hands to I love to cook

18:07

or bake. There's so many different things

18:09

and make people happier but sometimes I

18:11

think and this is true for for

18:13

adults as well. We think will is

18:16

something make somebody else happy or then

18:18

of course that will make me be.

18:21

But. If you think about it, you realize.

18:23

That's not true because people are very

18:25

different. Some people love to play the.

18:28

Guitar hour after hour after hour.

18:30

And send people would rather be doing

18:32

something else with that time. And that's

18:34

okay because people are different, so we

18:37

want to think about understanding ourselves so

18:39

that we can. Save our lives to

18:41

reflect what's true about us. Some

18:44

for hims, kids and adults but

18:46

especially kids. worry about other people.

18:48

I think we all do. That's

18:50

human nature. Certainly at the adults

18:52

in your life are worried about

18:54

you and your happiness. but sometimes

18:56

kids worry about they're adults happiness.

18:58

To: Can you affect the happiness

19:00

of someone else and is that

19:02

your responsibility to make your parents.

19:04

Or your sibling or your teacher

19:07

happy. You can't

19:09

make someone happy and they

19:11

can't make you happy. Sometimes

19:14

you wish so much that

19:16

you. Could make someone happy or

19:18

they're trying. So how did he do

19:20

trying to make you happy? But we

19:22

really can't do that. We each have

19:25

to make our happiness for ourselves. And

19:27

sometimes that's very painful.

19:29

But it's also very

19:31

encouraging because you think,

19:34

well, I can be

19:36

responsible. For what I know,

19:38

makes me happier. It's. Not

19:40

your job to make your parents happy

19:42

for example, but you can choose to

19:44

be happy in what you have in

19:46

your life and help that. Rub. Off

19:48

on the other people in your life. For

19:51

most of us, the best thing to do

19:53

is to think about well given my own

19:55

self. What? Can I do

19:57

with my own self? Because. That.

20:00

will help other people but

20:02

indirectly in a way. There's

20:05

something that's actually called emotional contagion

20:07

because it's like something that we

20:09

inspect each other with. We

20:12

share our emotions with other people in

20:14

a flash, like when you're talking to somebody or

20:17

if you were talking to them on the

20:19

phone or even if you saw their picture,

20:21

you would start to pick up their emotions.

20:23

And so this is just something that we're

20:25

constantly sharing back and forth. And so if

20:28

you feel like someone's emotions are rubbing

20:30

off on you or your

20:32

emotions are rubbing off on someone else,

20:34

that's very true. But

20:36

each of us needs to be responsible for

20:38

our own happiness. My

20:40

name is Yom Nick from

20:42

Fort Collins, Colorado. What

20:45

makes me happy is

20:47

daddy and everything in the

20:49

whole wide world. I'm Sebastian,

20:51

I'm from Baltimore, Maryland and

20:54

I'm six years old. And the three things

20:56

that make me happy are

20:58

my two cats, Bo and Po, and

21:00

playing soccer. My name is Susanna, I'm

21:03

10 years old and I live in

21:05

North Little Rock, Arkansas. Some things that

21:07

make me happy are dogs, rollerblading, and

21:09

music. My name is Sophia,

21:11

I live in North Little Rock,

21:14

Arkansas and what makes me happy is

21:16

cuddling with my dogs, family

21:18

movies, gymnastics, soccer,

21:22

friends and family. More happiness coming right

21:24

up. This

21:26

is, But Why, a podcast for curious kids. I'm

21:29

Jane Lindholm. For

21:31

our final episode of 2023, you're telling us what

21:33

makes you happy. And

21:35

you know what? Hearing all of you share the things

21:37

that bring you joy in your

21:39

own voices is putting a huge smile

21:41

on my face. We're also drilling

21:44

down on some of the research surrounding happiness that author and

21:46

podcaster, Gretchen Rubin

21:48

has discovered in her many years learning about the

21:50

art and science of wellbeing. I

21:53

have to admit, we're blushing a little bit right now

21:56

because some of you took the opportunity to... to

22:00

tell us that you like, well, us.

22:04

My name's Stephanie and I'm eight years old.

22:07

And I live in Brantford, Connecticut.

22:09

What gives me joy is

22:11

listening to But Why's at

22:13

all the episodes. My

22:16

favorite one is the dinosaur episode.

22:18

My name is Bernadette. I am nine

22:20

years old and I live in Buffalo

22:23

Grove, Illinois. And what brings me joy

22:25

is meeting new people and listening to

22:27

But Why's. My name is Savannah. I

22:30

am seven years old. I

22:32

live in Cranston, Rhode

22:35

Island in America. What

22:37

makes me happy is spending time with

22:39

my family and listening to your guys'

22:41

podcast. My name is Judah and I'm

22:44

nine years old. And I

22:46

live in Canton, Massachusetts. And what makes me

22:48

happy is having my favorite snack and listening

22:50

to But Why. Aw, thanks,

22:52

everyone. As I said, it makes

22:54

us so happy to hear from you. And

22:57

Melody, Kiana, and I get great joy out

22:59

of researching the questions you send to us.

23:02

Now, a lot of you wrote in about animals. My

23:05

name's Mark. I live in Tasmania

23:07

in Australia. I'm seven

23:09

years old. And what makes me happy is

23:12

being with pets. Hi,

23:15

my name is Zaya. And

23:18

I'm seven years old and I live

23:20

in Oregon and

23:23

something that makes me really, really,

23:25

really, really, really, really,

23:28

really, really happy

23:30

is kittens. And this

23:32

song, watermelon, yum, yum, yum.

23:35

Hi, my name is Iris and I

23:37

live in Silverton, Oregon. And

23:40

something that makes me happy is kittens.

23:43

I'm Musa. I live in

23:45

Warren, Michigan. And the

23:47

thing that makes me happy are my

23:49

cats. Hi, my name is

23:51

Jane. I live in Los Ososco, California. I'm seven

23:53

years old and the thing that makes me happy

23:56

is my neighbor's cat book. My

23:58

name is Ethan from Connecticut. and

24:00

birds make me happy. My name

24:03

is Hunter and I'm nine years

24:05

old. I live in Kewalskum, Wisconsin,

24:08

US. And what makes me

24:10

happy is climbing trees and playing with my

24:12

hamster. Hi, my name is

24:14

Isafa El. I am six

24:16

years old. I live in Norway.

24:20

I like to play with my cats inside

24:22

the house. Hello, my name

24:24

is Elizabeth and I'm eight years old.

24:26

I live in Toronto, Canada. What

24:28

makes me feel happy is snuggling

24:30

and playing with my kittens. My

24:34

name is Maggie. I'm six years

24:36

old. I live in

24:38

St. Albans for months. I

24:41

feel joy when I see my

24:43

cats running around. So crazy. Hi,

24:46

my name is James and I live

24:49

in Calgary, Alberta. I make

24:51

you whole. And what makes me happy

24:53

is my dog, Dewey.

24:56

My name is Caroline.

24:59

I live in Diamonddale,

25:01

Michigan, and I'm catching

25:04

ladybugs, dang me joy. My

25:07

name is Henry. I'm seven years

25:10

old. I live in

25:12

Diamonddale, Michigan, and

25:15

catching spiders brings

25:18

me joy. My name

25:20

is Melanie. I'm seven years old. I

25:22

live in Everett, Washington, and what makes

25:24

me happy is playing and hanging out

25:27

with my puppy, Stella. My

25:29

name is Maya. I

25:31

live in London, and what brings me

25:33

joy is dopes. My name's Harvey.

25:36

I'm seven years old.

25:38

I live in Brantford, Ontario,

25:40

Canada, and what brings me

25:42

joy is playing with my

25:44

dog. I'm Audrey, and

25:47

I'm seven years old. I live in

25:49

Blacksburg, Virginia, and what

25:51

makes me happy is playing with my grandma

25:53

and grandpa's dog. My

25:55

name is Oliver. I'm eight

25:57

years old. I live in Galveston, Michigan.

26:00

and my puppy dog makes me

26:03

happy. I'm

26:05

Ronnie. I'm five years

26:07

old. What

26:09

we bring me dog is

26:12

to have my dog here. My

26:15

name is Zelda. I'm six

26:17

years old. I live

26:19

in Norwalk, Connecticut. What

26:22

makes me happy is my

26:24

dog, Kathy. Hi,

26:26

my name is Abba Wade. I

26:29

live in BC, Canada. And

26:31

what makes me happy is my swimming

26:34

girls. Hi, my name is

26:37

Blone. I'm five years old. I

26:39

live in British Columbia, Canada.

26:41

And what brings me joy

26:43

is chasing my friends chickens.

26:46

My name is Hina. I'm five

26:48

years old. And I'm from

26:51

Kingfield, Florida. And I

26:53

like snuggling with dogs. My

26:55

name is Teddy. And I'm

26:59

six years old. I live

27:01

in Chicago. And what

27:03

brings me joy is

27:06

playing with my

27:08

leopard kochi and

27:10

playing with my friend Ellen. I'm

27:13

from Missouri, Springfield. And

27:15

I'm five years old. And my name

27:17

is Riley. And what brings me joy

27:20

is my leopard deck of Lonnie.

27:22

My name is Talon. I live in Ontario,

27:24

Canada. And what makes me happy is when

27:26

my dogs cuddle with me. We

27:28

got another, we got actually more than one

27:31

kid who wrote about

27:33

sandwiches. My name's Ananka.

27:36

I live in Manhattan, New York. I'm

27:40

six years old.

27:42

And the thing that makes me

27:44

happy is when

27:47

my dad makes me a peanut butter and

27:49

jelly sandwich. Hi, my name

27:51

is Robert. And I live

27:53

in San Antonio, Texas. And

27:55

I'm nine years old. And my favorite

27:57

things about my favorite things about my

27:59

family. is my

28:02

family and the sandwich my dad always

28:04

makes. Is

28:07

there something about having somebody else make

28:09

you some food that you love that

28:11

just makes you feel so excited? Oh,

28:13

absolutely. I think that's one of the

28:15

things that most people, even

28:17

if they didn't write in, would say, oh,

28:19

it's the special kind of toast that my

28:21

grandmother makes. Or it's like our family

28:24

holiday cookies that we always bake. There's

28:26

something about that connection between, you know,

28:28

somebody making a special thing for you

28:31

and a warm, happy feeling. That's really

28:33

fun to think about. Here are a

28:35

few more delicious things that give you the

28:37

giggles. Hi, my name

28:40

is Libby. I live in St.

28:42

Olments, Vermont. I'm three years old.

28:45

I'm joyful when I eat

28:48

my favorite food soup. Hi,

28:50

my name's Cece, and

28:52

I'm seven years old, and

28:54

I live in Thailand. And

28:57

the thing that brings me happiness

29:00

is when I get some

29:02

snacks and food,

29:06

and when I get books and

29:09

stuff. And I

29:11

am also happy when I go

29:14

to Shindrai, and I get

29:16

some cicones. My name

29:18

is Elsie, and I

29:20

live in Portland, Oregon. I'm

29:23

five years old, and what brings me

29:26

joy is playing with my friends and

29:28

eating cupcakes. My name is Matt, and

29:30

I am from Cincinnati, Ohio. What

29:33

makes me happy is reading

29:36

books, eating watermelon, eating sweets,

29:38

and eating pizza. My name

29:41

is Melbourne. I'm

29:43

six years old, and my

29:45

favorite is song. And

29:48

my favorite

29:50

thing to do is when

29:53

people make me my favorite snack.

29:56

My name is Addison, and I'm six years

29:58

old, and I live in Canada,

30:01

what makes me happy is making

30:03

gingerbread cookies. A lot of

30:05

you told us hugs give you the warm fuzzies.

30:08

And my name is Eazy and

30:10

I am seven years old and

30:12

I live in Key, West Comusca.

30:16

And what makes me happy is giving a hug

30:18

to my mom. My name's Clayton

30:21

and I'm six

30:23

years old and I'm in

30:25

kindergarten. What makes me happy

30:28

is my mom and dad's huggy. Hi,

30:30

my name is Kayla. I

30:32

am nine years old. I

30:35

am from Miami, Florida. What

30:37

makes me happy is to

30:40

hug and play with my friends. Hi,

30:43

my name is Evan. I'm from

30:45

Sea to Rapids. I'm five years

30:48

old and what makes me happy

30:50

is my mom and dad's huggy.

30:53

My name is Aadi. I'm

30:56

10 years old. I live in China.

30:58

I feel happy when my

31:01

mommy hugs me. Hi,

31:03

my name is Chrisman. I'm

31:06

six years old. I live

31:08

in Lulu, Kentucky. And

31:11

what makes me happy is

31:14

when I get mommy hugs. Hi,

31:18

my name's Aliza. I'm

31:20

six and a half years old. I live

31:22

in Sao Paulo, Brazil. And it

31:25

makes me happy. One,

31:27

I hug my friend. My

31:29

name's Nicole. I'm from Lulu, California.

31:32

I'm six and a half years old. So

31:35

what makes me happy is when

31:38

I get to hug my mom and dad. My

31:41

name is Elliot. I am six

31:43

years old. I live in

31:46

Calgary, Alberta. And what makes me happy

31:48

is when I give my mom a

31:50

hug. My name is

31:52

Nicole. I'm six years old. I'm from

31:54

Canada. What I like is hugs

31:56

from my mom. Hi, I'm Ivy

31:59

and I'm... and

32:01

I come from Melbourne Australia and what makes

32:03

me happy is when I get a

32:05

cuddle from my favorite toy. My name is

32:07

Sweet and I'm from Israel and I'm 70

32:10

years old and

32:13

what brings me joy is hugging my teddy

32:15

bear. Sometimes you might not

32:17

want a hug but physical touch somebody holding

32:19

your hand or giving you a pat on

32:21

the back when that's something that you're welcoming.

32:24

How does actually touching someone

32:26

contribute to our feelings of

32:28

joy and calmness and

32:30

safety? The feeling of touch of being

32:33

like having a warm social touch from

32:35

someone else when you want it is

32:37

a great way to help yourself feel comforted and

32:39

calm. I mean we know this as you say

32:42

from hugs or if you're trying to fall asleep

32:44

maybe if someone pats your back or strokes

32:46

your hair it's very calming. This is one

32:48

of the reasons it's fun to pat a

32:50

dog or a cat. And it's okay to

32:52

say I don't want to be touched right

32:54

now or I don't like

32:56

to be tickled but I really like to have

32:58

my back rubbed. Yeah that feels good to me.

33:01

Right and absolutely because people are very different in

33:03

what they like and some people don't they want

33:05

to hold on to like a plush toy like

33:07

they have a favorite toy. We

33:09

also got a lot of people who

33:12

talked to us about learning new things

33:14

and this sense of happiness

33:16

that it gave them to be

33:18

able to do something like Logan wrote in and

33:21

said I live in Atlanta

33:23

I am nine years old and something

33:25

that makes me happy is learning

33:27

how to tie my shoe. Why?

33:30

Because it is

33:32

fun to do and

33:35

you won't have to ask your mom

33:37

to do it. What

33:39

is it about getting something like learning

33:41

something and feeling that pride that makes

33:43

us happy too? This is absolutely true

33:46

I'm very impressed that he identified this

33:48

because this is something that can make

33:50

us happier. When we feel like we're

33:53

growing when we feel like we're learning

33:55

when we feel like we're mastering a

33:57

skill like tying our shoe when we're

34:00

Teaching, like teaching a dog to do

34:02

all kinds of special tricks when we're

34:04

making things better. This is a big

34:06

source of happiness for us. My

34:09

name is Silas and

34:12

I'm from Brooklyn, New York. What

34:15

makes me happy is

34:17

learning about space, especially

34:20

black holes in alien

34:22

life. My name is

34:24

Maverick. I am seven years old. I

34:26

live in Neuma, Arizona. My favorite thing

34:28

is getting a brand new book. My

34:30

name is Central and I live in

34:32

Switzerland. What makes me happy is reading

34:36

chapter books. My name is Maggie.

34:38

I'm nine years old.

34:40

I live in Carlisle, Massachusetts. I

34:42

feel happy when I

34:45

am reading a good book like Harry

34:47

Potter or Wings of Fire. Hi, my

34:49

name is Ellen. I

34:51

am seven years old and I live

34:54

in Brazil, Florida, and Opelis. What

34:57

makes me happy is reading,

34:59

going to school to learn, and

35:02

having hugs from my friends and

35:05

family. Hi, my name

35:07

is Moana. I am seven

35:09

years old. I live in

35:11

Apex, North Carolina. What

35:14

makes me happy is learning animal

35:16

hugs. And when

35:18

my friends ask me

35:20

questions about animals, I

35:22

know the right answer.

35:25

Hello, my name is Elohanto.

35:28

I'm from New York. I'm from

35:30

Berkeley and I live in Toronto. And

35:33

my teachers make me happy. My

35:36

name is Theo. I am

35:39

from Fort Collins, Colorado.

35:42

And what makes me happy is

35:45

books so that I can read books.

35:48

My name is Susie. And I'm five years

35:50

old. I live in Brinks,

35:53

Virginia. What

35:55

makes me happy is learning.

35:57

My name is Louisa. I'm

36:01

seven years old. I live in St.

36:03

Paul, Minnesota. What brings

36:05

me joy is reading. My name

36:07

is Lord, and I am six

36:09

years old. One thing

36:11

that brings me joy is

36:14

learning to be smart.

36:17

My name is Henry. I live

36:19

in California. The thing

36:21

that brings me joy is reading a

36:23

good book. Hi, my name

36:25

is Penelope. I'm 11 years old, and I

36:27

live in Toronto, Ontario. One thing that brings

36:30

me joy is when my gymnastics coach tells

36:32

me I can move on to a harder skill

36:34

because I did move really well. It

36:36

makes me happy to see her proud, and it

36:38

also makes me proud. But here's the

36:40

tricky part. Sometimes when you're learning to

36:43

do a new thing, it can be

36:45

really frustrating. Sometimes it doesn't

36:47

make us happy right away because when

36:49

you're learning to tie your shoe, or you're

36:51

learning to read, or you're learning to play

36:53

the violin, there's a lot of time when

36:56

you're frustrated, you feel like you can't do

36:58

what you want, you have to practice, you're

37:00

not as good as you want to be,

37:02

you have an idea in your head of

37:04

how a picture should look, but then you

37:07

can't make it look the way you want.

37:09

And that can be

37:12

frustrating. But when we

37:14

move past that, when we remember, okay,

37:16

this is the hard part, but it's

37:18

going to feel really great. When I

37:20

master this skill or this task,

37:22

or I do something the way that

37:25

I want, it gives us such

37:27

a big boost. So it's very helpful

37:29

to remember that sometimes it takes a

37:31

while to get to the happy part,

37:34

but it's coming if you stick with it. This

37:36

episode is coming out in the last few days

37:39

of the year, so almost

37:41

all of you have celebrated a birthday

37:43

already, and that makes you pretty happy.

37:46

My name is Daniel, I'm

37:48

nearly seven friends, and

37:51

what makes me happy is

37:54

that my birthday is on the

37:56

20th of December.

38:00

I'm Maddie. I'm

38:03

in Jackson, Tennessee. I'm the back

38:05

of town fire, and what would make me joy

38:07

is my birthday. Hi,

38:10

my name is Prasanna. I just

38:12

turned 11, and I live in

38:14

Cupertino, California. What makes me

38:16

happy is my birthday, and when my

38:18

brother makes me fry tofu with

38:20

soy sauce. My name is

38:22

Kirsten. I'm almost eight years old. Something

38:24

that brings me joy is my birthday because

38:27

I get to hug my friends. Hi,

38:29

my name is Wes. I am nine

38:32

years old. I live in Silverton, Oregon. Something

38:34

that makes me happy is going

38:37

skiing and having a

38:39

birthday party. And a few

38:41

of you mentioned a certain holiday celebrated

38:43

by many people in December. Hi,

38:46

my name is Kyra. I'm five

38:48

years old. I live in Fayetteville,

38:50

Arkansas, and my Christmas tree makes

38:52

me happy because it's beautiful. My

38:54

name is George,

38:57

and I live in

38:59

Atlanta, Georgia, and

39:02

I am five

39:04

and a half year old. I

39:07

feel joy to get presents

39:09

on Christmas. Hi,

39:11

my name is Lincoln. I'm seven years old.

39:14

I live in Queensborough, New York. Time with

39:16

my family all Christmas brings me joy. Hi,

39:19

my name is Nava. I'm

39:22

six years old. I live in a

39:24

river loom. This is what makes me

39:26

happy, getting presents. My

39:28

name is Grayson, and I'm from Georgia,

39:31

Vermont, and the cross brings me joy.

39:34

Hi, my name is Charlie. My

39:36

name is Ron. We are twins,

39:39

and we are seven years old. We

39:42

come from Ireland, and we

39:44

live in Geneva, Switzerland. And

39:47

the thing that makes me happy is

39:49

tobogganing with my brother. And the

39:52

thing that makes me happy is to

39:55

have Christmas with my family. Okay, those

39:58

are events that can definitely make some sense. smile.

40:00

But our happiness podcaster and author Gretchen

40:02

Rubin told us that one of the

40:05

best ways people can be happy is

40:07

to figure out what you like to do and then

40:10

just do that thing. One thing I hear from

40:12

adults a lot is they don't know how to

40:14

have fun. They don't remember how to have fun.

40:16

And what I often say to them is well

40:18

what did you do for fun when you were

40:21

10 years old? Because what you did for fun

40:23

when you were 10 years old is probably something

40:25

that you would enjoy as an adult. But

40:27

then sometimes kids say I don't know what

40:29

I want to do for fun because I feel

40:32

like I'm always racing around doing what everybody's

40:34

telling me to do. I don't know what

40:36

I would do for fun. And I would

40:38

say it's really important to

40:40

know what is fun for you.

40:42

Not what everybody else is telling

40:44

you is fun. Not what you

40:46

think should be fun. Not what

40:48

your friends tell you is fun.

40:50

Not what's a sign to you.

40:52

But if you really had a

40:55

magical day where you could do anything

40:57

you wanted to do, what would you

40:59

do? And really try to

41:01

do that. Try to make time for

41:03

that because play

41:05

is the work of childhood. But

41:08

then often that play

41:10

has very big implications for what we

41:12

do when we grow up. And so

41:15

it really matters more than

41:17

you think to know

41:19

what is fun for you.

41:21

Need some inspiration? Here

41:24

are a lot of you telling us what you

41:26

do for fun. My name

41:30

is Mims and I'm 8 and half years old

41:32

and I live in Atlanta, Georgia and I feel

41:34

joy when I jump in my piles in the

41:36

fall. My name is Evelyn and I am 4

41:38

years old and I'm five

41:41

years old. We live in India. And

41:49

my favorite thing is to

41:52

ride my bounce bike. I'm

41:55

Michael from the UP and something

41:58

that makes me happy. biking. My

42:01

name is Ken. I'm

42:04

5 years old. I

42:07

live in California. I'm

42:10

happy when I ride a bike.

42:13

My name is Mailo. I am 7 years

42:16

old and I live in

42:18

Gilbert, Arizona and what makes

42:20

me happy is playing soccer.

42:22

My name is Jackie. I'm 9 years

42:24

old. I live in Taipei. I

42:27

went in skateboarding,

42:30

driving, doing sports. It makes

42:32

me happy. My name is

42:34

Andrew. I'm from Mississippi and

42:38

I like to catch the football with my

42:40

dad and play with friends. My name is

42:42

Cameron. I'm 10 years old and

42:45

I'm from Toronto, Ontario

42:48

and something that brings me joy is when

42:50

I scored goal in a soccer game. So

42:53

my name is Tim Murphy. I'm

42:56

5 years old. I live in

42:58

Paris and what

43:01

makes me happy is doing

43:04

sports like basketball,

43:06

rugby, tennis, swimming,

43:12

football. All

43:14

kinds of sports makes me happy.

43:17

Hi my name is Amir.

43:20

I'm 5 and happy as

43:22

old. I live in

43:24

Bristol, England. When I'm

43:26

riding my S2 car,

43:28

it makes me so happy. Hello,

43:30

I am Liv. I'm 10 years

43:32

old and I am from Taiwan.

43:34

I would say when

43:37

I play badminton, it

43:40

will make me happy because I really

43:42

love the sport. I

43:44

also find playing sports really fun. It

43:46

makes me really happy to go outside for a long

43:48

run or to go for a hike in the woods

43:51

and I love playing basketball with my son. My

43:53

name is Thomas. I live in Waterloo,

43:57

Ontario. What

44:00

makes me happy is when I get to

44:02

build Lego. My name is

44:04

Benson and I am seven years

44:06

old. I

44:10

am from Houston, Texas. What

44:13

makes me happy is building

44:15

any Lego sets because

44:18

I like the way they look

44:21

when they are finished. I'm

44:25

Aura, I'm eight years old. I'm

44:27

from Shanghai, China. And

44:29

the thing that makes me happy is when

44:31

mom supplies me a new toy. My

44:34

name is Clara. I

44:36

live in New Prague,

44:38

Minnesota. And what brings me joy

44:41

is arts and crafts. I'm

44:44

Clara. I'm from Ashland, Oregon.

44:46

And five years old, what makes me

44:48

happy is crafting. My name is Laura.

44:50

I'm 10 years old. I

44:53

live in Winder Garden, Florida. And

44:55

I feel happy

44:57

whenever I draw. Hi,

45:00

my name is Lily. I

45:02

am seven years old. I live in Nashville,

45:04

Tennessee. And something that brings me

45:06

joy is arts and crafts. Doing

45:10

arts and crafts or Lego can be a

45:12

really great way to focus on one task

45:14

and kind of block out everything else. My

45:17

name is Charlotte. I'm five years

45:19

old. I live in Edina, Minnesota.

45:22

And what makes me happy is the

45:24

color red. Hello,

45:27

my name is Tages. And I'm 12 years old.

45:29

I live in Canberra, Australia. Some things

45:31

that make me happy are aircraft and the

45:33

drums. My

45:36

name is Laura. I'm five

45:38

years old. And I

45:40

live in Newcastle, Washington, Minnesota.

45:44

And what makes me happy is playing

45:47

with my baby doll. Hi,

45:50

my name is Anderson. I

45:53

live in Seattle, Washington. I

45:55

am seven years old. And

45:58

what makes me happy is playing with my baby doll. Minecraft

46:01

and Monopoly and being with

46:03

my friends. My

46:05

name is Lucas and

46:08

I live in Green

46:11

Bay, Wisconsin. And

46:13

the thing that brings me joy is

46:15

when I play games with mom. My

46:18

name is Mita. I'm five years old. I

46:20

live in Oregon. What

46:23

makes me happy is playing

46:26

with my friends, being outside, camping

46:28

in the fresh air, doing

46:31

art, and

46:33

running around at school. My

46:35

name is Spencer. I'm nine years old.

46:37

I live in Studio City, California. And

46:41

what makes me happy is when

46:44

I play roadblocks on my iPad, roadblock

46:46

stores. It's my favorite game. And

46:49

when I get a brand new

46:52

Lego set, because I love to build Lego's. I'm

46:55

Tilly and I'm six years old. I

46:58

live in my... What makes

47:00

me happy is playing with

47:02

my neighbors, dog and dog

47:04

swimming. Hi,

47:07

my name is Kravata. I'm nine

47:09

years old. I live in Inter-Agree,

47:11

Switzerland. And

47:14

what makes me happy is

47:16

doing gymnastics. My

47:18

name is Emma, and I'm seven years

47:21

old. I live

47:23

in Springfield, Virginia. And

47:25

what makes me happy is going on

47:27

a new adventure. Hi, I'm

47:30

Jack, and I'm seven. And hi, I'm Ollie,

47:32

and I'm 10, and we live in York,

47:34

England. What makes me happy

47:36

is quizzes. And

47:39

what makes me happy is sitting in

47:41

front of the fire, watching movies with

47:43

my dogs. These are all so great.

47:46

Hi, my name is Jonah. I live

47:48

in Fairfield, Connecticut. And

47:51

what brings me joy is being

47:53

able to play outside with fresh air.

47:56

My name is Mia.

47:58

I'm from China. I'm

48:01

a six year old and

48:04

what makes me happy

48:06

is making friends

48:08

and taking buses. Taking

48:11

buses makes me happy because I

48:14

go to the second floor. It

48:17

feels like I'm driving. I'll protect

48:20

her bus. What makes

48:22

me happy is me

48:24

by my family, having

48:27

my toys, having my

48:29

electronics, having my stuffies.

48:32

My name is C.E.O. I'm four

48:34

years old and

48:36

the thing that makes

48:39

me happy is my mom

48:41

is going to like Ring Rock.

48:45

My name is Will. I

48:47

live in Flagstaff and

48:49

I'm five years old and

48:51

what makes me happy is playing tag

48:54

and going to the ocean. My

48:57

name is Kai. I

49:01

am 11 years old and

49:03

I live in Columbus, Ohio. What

49:07

makes me happy is

49:09

seeing model trains and playing

49:12

with toy trains. My

49:14

name is Libby and I'm

49:17

from North Carolina and I'm six.

49:19

What makes me happy is my puppy boom,

49:22

my family, my friends and

49:24

art. I'm Jewel.

49:26

I am five

49:29

years old. I live

49:31

in the Canary Islands. I

49:34

like being with Papa and

49:36

Mama, going to the skateboard

49:38

and going to shore. My

49:41

name is Kona. I'm seven years old

49:43

and I live in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

49:45

What makes me happy is watching movies.

49:48

My name is E.H.O. I live in

49:50

Only Maryland and the thing that makes

49:52

me happy is a hug. My

49:55

name is Moo. I'm five years old.

49:58

I live in Only Maryland. and

50:01

the thing that makes me happy is jumping

50:04

on the trampoline. My name

50:06

is Jonah. I am eight

50:08

years old. My

50:11

name is Clara. I'm five

50:13

years old. We live in

50:16

Saigon in Vietnam.

50:19

And what makes me happy is when

50:21

a friend plays with me. When I

50:23

go to the playground, that makes me

50:25

happy. My name is Julian.

50:28

I'm eight years old. And

50:30

I come from Warsaw, Poland. I'm

50:33

happy with it. I can draw from

50:36

it with my friends. I listen

50:38

to audiobooks and watch

50:40

the television. My

50:43

name is Aileen. I am

50:46

six and a half years old. I

50:49

live in Houston, Texas. And

50:52

what makes me happy is

50:54

scooting with my mommy and

50:56

daddy. What makes

50:58

me happy is organized. My name is

51:00

Clara. I'm nine years old. And I

51:02

live in Prague. My name

51:05

is Sebastian. I'm six years

51:07

old. I live in California.

51:10

And I get really

51:12

happy when I get

51:14

to study box with my dad.

51:17

Hello, my name is Rowan. I

51:20

am five years old. I live

51:22

in New York, Minister

51:25

of British Columbia, Canada. And

51:28

what makes me happy is

51:30

baking. My name is Richard. And

51:32

I'm seven years old as I live in

51:34

Ireland. One of the

51:36

many things that makes me happy is

51:38

honestly going to my neighbor's house and playing

51:40

games for three hours. My

51:43

name is Joanna. I'm eight years old.

51:45

I live in North And

51:53

I am from North Caroline and I am

51:55

five years old. And what makes me happy

51:57

is going to the zoo to see in more than one day.

52:00

Hi, my name is Avery. I'm eight years

52:03

old and I live in St. John's, Michigan.

52:05

One of the things that makes me happy

52:07

is playing basketball. Hi, I'm

52:09

Ariana and I'm five years old. I

52:11

live in Michigan and what makes me

52:14

happy is going to try

52:26

new foods and going to

52:28

new places. Also try new

52:30

things like riding a bike for the

52:33

first time. Hi, my

52:35

name is Adia. I live

52:37

in New York and

52:40

this is how I get happy. Thanks my best

52:42

friend. My name is

52:44

Molly. I'm 13. I live in Pennsylvania

52:47

and something that makes me happy is

52:49

shelving books at my library. I'm

52:51

Lincoln from New England and

52:53

what makes me excited is decorating

52:56

my room and riding my bike.

52:58

Lincoln out. This is such an

53:00

awesome list. What

53:02

makes you, listening right now, you happy?

53:06

What do you do that's the most fun? And

53:08

how are you going to keep that sense of

53:10

fun as you get older? And

53:13

adults, what about you? What do you do

53:15

that's fun? How do you bring joy to

53:17

your life? Before we

53:19

go, here's one more question from

53:21

Evie. Hello, but why my name is

53:23

Evie and I'm nine years old and I

53:25

live in Eastbourne, UK. What

53:28

makes me happy is when I'm playing with

53:31

my best friend and snuggling with

53:33

my mummy. What makes

53:35

you happy? Thanks for

53:37

asking Evie. I mentioned a

53:39

minute ago that I really like hiking and running.

53:43

Being outside in the woods alone, well, alone

53:45

with my dog is really something that brings

53:47

me a lot of joy. And

53:49

when I'm out in the woods, I especially

53:52

like finding new mushrooms and trying to identify

53:54

what kind they are. Actually,

53:57

a lot of the things you talked about today

53:59

in this episode, make me happy too. And

54:02

I try to make a mental note

54:04

of one small moment each day that

54:06

fills me with joy, and that has

54:08

really helped me feel like a happier

54:10

person overall. Well,

54:12

that's it for this episode. We

54:14

really hope everyone has a happy and

54:16

safe 2024. But Y's

54:19

team includes Melody Baudette, Keona Haskin,

54:21

and me, Jane Lindholm. Making

54:24

this show and hearing from you makes all three

54:26

of us happy. We produced

54:28

this program at Vermont Public, and

54:30

it's distributed by PRX. Our

54:32

theme music is by Luke Reynolds. We'll

54:34

be back in two weeks with an all-new

54:37

episode. Until then, stay

54:39

curious.