Happiness… are we oldies happier in city or rural areas?

My good friend and neighbour Florrie and  I were dipping a homemade biscuit in our cuppas this morning and chatting about happiness.    And not just happiness, but happiness in rural vs city areas…

I showed her how to research on the internet and we could see that there have been lots of surveys over the years.   This month, Australia was named one of the happiest countries in the industrialised world, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Better Life Index using criteria such as jobs, income, environment and health. Australia kept the top spot for the third year in a row ahead of Sweden and Canada.

In general, the report found Australians are more satisfied with their lives than the OECD average, with 84 per cent of people saying they have more positive experiences in an average day (feelings of rest, pride in accomplishment, enjoyment, etc) than negative ones (pain, worry, sadness, boredom, etc). This figure is higher than the OECD average of 80 per cent.

Anyway, Florrie and I are not really that bothered whether Aussies are the happiest in the world or not.  We’re interested in finding out whether people who live in a rural area are happier than those who live in city surrounds.

We were speculating about where or when we felt happiest.  In our retirement, both of us agreed that enjoying the company of (or in our long distance case, communicating with) grandchildren would have to be high on the list.   Other topics were having good friends and neighbours, singing, caring for animals, baking, craft or creativity, gathering with family, and yes, even watching the telly.

We agree that money can’t make you happy, but it’s no fun if you don’t have any.  Volunteering provides opportunities for socialising and feeling rewarded for a job well done.   There’s no excuse in our area to feel disconnected from the community.  Heavens to Betsy, no – it’s quite the opposite sometimes – not enough time to attend to all the volunteer tasks that come our way!

Life expectancy for females is about 84 years, so there’s life in the old girls yet, and basically, we’re happy as pigs in mud!

So are you rural or urban, and what makes you happy?