"Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it's…

“Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass” is a jocular quotation that has been printed on several posters. The quotation has been cited in print since at least 1981, when Reader’s Digest credited it to Dell Crossword Puzzles.

Google Books
The Reader’s Digest
Volume 119
1981
Pg. 120:
HAPPINESS lies in our own back yard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.
—Dell Crossword Puzzles

14 October 1981, Daily Sitka Sentinel (Sitka, AK), “Kryptogram from Katlian,” pg. 2, col. 1:
Happiness lies in our own back yard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.
Dell Puzzles

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LoriMoreno
‏@LoriMoreno
“Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it is probably well hidden by crabgrass.“Dell Crossword Puzzles #lorimoreno #quote
11:44 AM - 24 May 2009

Twitter
TheHappinessRetreat
‏@TheHappyRetreat
#Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass - Anonymous http://ow.ly/i/41R8D
5:30 AM - 17 Dec 2013

Google Books
Seeds of Revolution:
A Collection of Axioms, Passages and Proverbs, Volume 2
By Iam A. Freeman
Bloomington, IN: iUniverse LLC
2014
Pg. 433:
Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass. ~Anonymous

Jspace News
March 18, 2015
Parsha Vayikrah: Taking Nothing for Granted
By: Rabbi Mendy Wolf
(...)
There’s an old adage that goes “happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.” We’ve all been down that road before, and often it takes an outsider to point out to us the incredible things we possess. However, we don’t necessarily have to wait for that to happen; we can get there on our own.