Why are people over 50 usually happier than people younger?

 I think there are many factors in this.

The first kind of sad factor is that everyone who didn't like what life brought them now might be dead or crazy by 50.

The 2nd part of this is that "Unless you figure your stuff out often you are dead by 30".

Even when people speak of longevity they say which is true: "IF you live to be 30 you likely will see 90" which is also true.

What made me happy starting at age 50?

I almost died but then God Gave me the Grace to stay alive anyway. And though my health has been touch and Go since 1998 I find I'm happier than I have ever been before.

It's true I cannot physically do everything I did before. 

I don't go rock climbing.

I don't go Scuba diving.

I don't ride my KLR650 motorcycle (a dualsport) because I just gave it away because I have this inoperable hernia which means I cannot pick a 375 pound bike up if it falls over and have to ask for help.

Also, my wife is happy I'm not riding anything that big anymore even though I'm thinking about getting a CT 125 Honda Trail bike which is much lighter for trails in the wilderness and back roads everywhere.

I don't go Surfing anymore with a surfboard.

However, I do travel a lot to places like Mt. Shasta and Texas and Santa Barbara and the Hawaiian Islands.

However, I haven't been to Europe since 2011 when we went with two of our daughters and one of their boyfriends to England and Scotland then.

So, the last time I went to mainland Europe was 2009 to France to Paris and to Nice France then with my wife and 2 of my daughters.

Also, one of my daughters lives in Europe with her husband now part of the time because he is from there and works both there and here in the U.S. as a lawyer.

So, why are people over 50 years old usually happy?

I think they have figured out how to survive better than younger people have.

I became happy first when I realized I didn't fit into the world and wasn't going to and that I had to create my own world to live in which I have ever since.

To me, this is the trick of being happy. 

You don't try to fit into a world other people have created you create your own world.

So, happiness. (at least for me) is being Captain of my own ship and master of my own destiny.

And being an American from California I was allowed to do this and wasn't killed for being an individual like people are often in other countries.

So, for me, being "Captain of my own ship and Master of my own destiny" is why I'm happy more than ever since I was 50. However, I started to be really happy around 1980 when I was 32. I had about 5 years where I was really happy before my father died when I was 37 in 1985.d

However, after I almost died in 1998 and 1999 I have been happy most of the time since I was forced by my health and God to retire.

By God's Grace