Nice thread! Thanks LF for the link.
You are right that Elul CAN be a happy time for the reasons you mentioned, however, some people get very serious and can’t even crack a smile starting from before 10 Tammuz going all the way to after Yom Kippur…
Cheer up people, “we can do Tesuvah, we can repent from our ways…” and “Hashem is so kind to forgive you with Teshuva that comes from the heart…”