Every month I recommend a book I recently read and enjoyed very much.
“Happiness is something we can choose. It’s up to you.”
Eddie Jaku
Happiest Man on Earth, by Eddie Jaku
To be the happiest man on Earth is a bold statement from a Holocaust survivor who has gone through unimaginable horror. Eddie’s book was insightful about pain, happiness, and love. Faster your seat belt as he takes you through his life of disguise, captivity, escape, healing, and reconciliation.
The first part that broke my heart was when his mother was taken away and sent to the gas chamber. Eddie loved his mother much, and he suffered greatly. “If you have the opportunity today, please go home and tell your mother how much you love her.” he said. I thought about my own mother and how much I wanted to give her a big hug.
His friendship with Kurt was such a beautiful story. Miraculously, Eddie and Kurt somehow united at various camps across Poland after multiple separation. They shared food, resources, and sorrow with each other. That companionship and mutual sharing with another person was a big reason why he lived, Eddie wrote in his book. “The greatest thing you will ever do is to be loved by another person. Without friendship, a human being is lost. A friend is someone who reminds you to feel alive. The best balm for the soul is friendship. And with that friendship, we could do the impossible.”
If you are struggling in any way, think of Eddie. “Tomorrow will come if you survive today. One step a time.”
“Happiness comes from inside yourself and the people you love. Please, every day, remember to be he happy, and to make others happy to. Make yourself a friend to the world. Happiness doesn’t fall from the sky. It’s in your hands.”