A young boy rose to the occasion. They were in the middle of the desert. It was a spontaneous gathering of people who had followed a certain teacher for a while. It was Jesus of Nazareth. Clearly, the crowd was fascinated with His teachings. They hung on every word that came out of His mouth. People could sense that heaven was open.

Then the gathering came to a close, and here they were, in the middle of nowhere. No food, no water, nothing as far as the eye could see! A young boy got up and handed his lunch to Jesus – a few fish, some bread. His lunch was distributed to the crowd and something miraculous happened: Everybody got fed.

Just as Jesus multiplied the bread and fish a boy decided to donate, this is how joy multiplies when we share our happiness with one another. Here is what’s astonishing: we get more when we share. This might sound like a paradox, and yet it’s true.

Happiness is meant to be experienced together, and when we do, it multiplies. Sharing our time, our gifts, our affections, we will find that we suddenly have more time, more gifts to give and more love to share. Sharing our grief with others on the other hand, our pain is a little less hard to bear.

Be happy with those who are happy; be sad with those who are sad. We are better people when we share.