By the Aras river just off the border with Armenia is a tiny Turkish village not many heard of and even fewer cared about until not that long ago. Ayazkesti was somewhere nobody went to unless they had to, except for the casual smugglers stopping for supplies or seeking refuge from the sudden blizzards that ravage the unworldly terrain in winters. That is, nonetheless, where Bahar is from and where her greatest benefactor in life, Ayhan, lies buried today. From there, she feels, he watches over all that comes to pass as she became a pediatric surgeon and chooses to lead a life worthy of the honor following his example ever since. No wonder, then, that Bahar has an immaculate record as a physician for she couldn't be expected of anything less with the textbook care she has provided to her patients. During her practice for over half a century, she has never failed anyone who relied on her and has always known how to maintain people's trust unscathed. The trick, she says whe
The link between happiness and health is indisputable. It is so much so that the two can hardly exist without one another. Ask Tenzin Gyatso, the current Dalai Lama and the highest spiritual Tibetan leader, and he is famous to have said that "happiness is the highest form of health." I agree. Staying healthy without being happy is next to impossible and a low life satisfaction is almost certain to derail one's health sooner or later. All that promote happiness, or subjective well-being, then, are likely to improve one's health outcomes, too. But, life has inescapable ups and downs and we all experience loss, failure and disappointment -- some more than others -- as our journeys progress and we age. So the question is how do we stay happy regardless? Here, I will propose a certain state of mind that allows people to attest to a solid, thick body of contentment with their lives no matter what: Core happiness. It is an uninterrupted experience of perfection in one