Many songs have been written about the wisdom of finding pleasure in our everyday toil. There’s Whistle While You Work from Sleeping Beauty, for instance, and A Spoonful of Sugar from Mary Poppins. Then again, both of these songs come from the Disney corporation, which has made its way by retelling old fairy tales about magical worlds full of princes and princesses.
The Danish have preached the virtues of arbejdsglaede, the feeling taking pleasure in work, but the people of Thailand speak of a more comprehensive emotion: Sanuk. Sanuk is an attitude of fun that is summoned throughout the day, whether people are working or having moments of leisure. To feel sanuk is to encounter life as if it is a lighthearted game, not to be taken too seriously.
The perspective of sanuk observes opportunities for a good time wherever we happen to be. It doesn’t depend on special events, like parties, or places, like amusement parks. Sanuk goes with you wherever you go, or it isn’t sanuk.
