Many of us have felt the sparkling allure of pura vida, the simple life, and hygge, the feeling of cozy contentment. Our culture urges us to keep what “sparks joy” and to “live your best life” through curated spreads and marketing campaigns. Each image, slogan, and promise represents a fragment of the kind of life one might call good – a life marked by joy, simplicity, and authenticity – but what does it mean to actually be happy, and what really is the elusive “good life” we always seem to want but can’t have?
