Reflection Post-A Whole New Mind

I have loved reading the book, The Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink because the ideas in the book justify my own thinking. In my early years as a person I decided that the best a person could do in life was be happy. It didn't really matter what a person was doing as long as they were happy. Also, the difference between joyfulness and humor is interesting. It seems that there is concern by those who supervise that if an employee is too happy that maybe they are not doing their job. I have just noticed this over the years. A person can have fun at work, but it has to be done clandestinely. It also seems that a person who is too jovial may not be seen as professional. There seems to be a fine line because a person can be seen as too serious also. Page 220-"I believe the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. That is clear. Whether one believes in religion or not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, we are all seeking something better in life. So I think the very motion of our life is towards happiness." -The Dalai Lama It seems, also that a person can be happy, but doesn't have to be smiling all the time. There can be an inner joyfulness.
Then there is also the meaning of life...the part in the book that discusses the meaning of life and that people who do not suffer possibly can spend more time thinking of the meaning of their life. It sometimes seems a quiet struggle within people that no one discusses. It's almost taboo. When have you been in a group and the topic of discussion was- what is the meaning of your life? So it would appear that the meaning of life and happiness are tied together. Without meaning-no happiness-no happiness-no meaning?
It seems that maybe in this time in history people are being accepted more for who they are than in the past. This seems to be a step in the right direction. Maybe people can just be and still be appreciated.
After reading about the research on video gaming it seems that maybe that might be an avenue to engage children more than I had thought in the past. I have, what I think is, a great idea for teaching children to read and to increase fluency that I would love to develop and discuss with someone. It might already be out there...but who knows!