I belong to a group called the Borneo Project, which performs environmental improvement activities for a Filipino immigrant settlement on Borneo Island, Malaysia. Until last spring, we had also been performing an exchange program with the village of Mantaranau, a colony belonging to an indigenous clan of the highlands. My contribution is a booklet that I created about my experiences in this village.

The goal of the project born in Mantaranau was "to create a place to feel and think about happiness together." At first, this goal didn't make much sense to me. In my head I felt that we would probably be told something along the lines of "Feel and think about happiness? Those are just pretty words spouted by students with their heads in the clouds." To start off with, I didn't think it was possible for two people to mutually understand each other from the bottom of their hearts. I was also resigned to the idea that if two parties couldn't communicate very well, there was nothing that could be done. So even if I were asked "What is happiness to you?" the only words that would come to mind were extremely vague. Plighted by the question of "What exactly is happiness?" I made my way to Mantaranau.

My activities in the village were played out to the rhythm of nature. I would wake up to the brightness of the morning and watch as the world grew dark during nightfall and periods of falling rain. In this subdued way of life devoid of material objects, my senses became sharpened and a multitude of things began to reverberate within me. There was also the love and affection offered to me by villagers that I had only just met. I wanted to treasure those encounters and feelings. The moment I felt this desire, my personal values made a 180 degree transformation. I noticed that the objects abounding within my surroundings were all connected to somebody's way of life and I was actually repeating encounters with countless people on a daily basis. I realized that I could feel happiness by discovering and treasuring this previously unseen connection.

It wasn't only that Mantaranau was extraordinary; it was also a matter of happiness being in close proximity. With the desire to express this idea, I wrote my booklet. There is something embarrassing about seriously talking and thinking about happiness. That's because doing so is the same as revealing one's own personal values and previous way of life. I would be delighted if a number of people were able to overcome that hurdle in some small way through reading my booklet and thinking about happiness one more time.