SCIENCE AND STAR OF HAPPINESS WITH GOAL SETTING
2026-01-19
A classic example for Goal Setting is the “Star of Bethlehem” in the Christmas story and is an example used by Professor Arthur Brooks at Harvard when he teaches his class on Happiness. The star is the guide to the manger or the purpose of my life, according to his analogy? Therefore, I am analyzing my daily practices that represent “THE STAR”.
I am on number 466 since I started blogging 8 years ago in May of 2017. I am in my 34th year of monthly OMOIDE meetings producing 500 word articles of our Japanese In America Experience stories about our Japanese heritage values. We are getting ready to publish OMOIDE VI this year; hopefully in time for the Seattle Cherry Blossom Festival’s 50th anniversary in April 2026.
More importantly, I need to make this weekly exercise personal and to keep me on my personal life path of “human learning” and serving others. One of my memories is of when our first daughter, Lynette, was born in 1964. Sam and I stared at the new life, when she was both awake and sleeping, saying, “Last year she was nothing!” Then we realized we might see great grandchildren in our life?
That’s when Sam and I set a goal, "To pass on our heritage values", to help those potential great grandchildren embrace core values of honesty, kindness, responsibility, and contributors to their community. Today, I might add, "Practice learning your own human path and purpose".
I shared this “birth of our first child” story in 2000, when we had a meeting at the St. Peter’s Japanese Episcopal Church to organize for creating our current Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington (JCCCW) at the Japanese Language School 2003.
The Seattle Japanese Language School building was built in 1913 and I have made the statement from the beginning that I want us to be on the Seattle Visitor’s Tour 100 years from now, sharing our strong heritage values for the benefit of our community!