Finding The True Thanks of Thanksgiving

 

Thanksgiving is traditionally a time to give thanks. Most of us are pretty good at that. We can usually always find people and situations in life that inspire us to be grateful. Until certain relatives show up for Thanksgiving dinner. Or the supposed friends you wish you hadn’t invited but felt obliged to decide to come. Yup, those.

You know, the ones who talk non-stop, or the ones who expect to be entertained, catered to, and generally treated like royalty while you run around madly trying to satisfy their every inconsiderate whim. Or those who insist on ‘helping’ which usually means creating a mess you have to clean up. Or those who adore their squabbling, noisy children intent on breaking your favorite decoration or pulling the cat’s tail. Etcetera . . .

What to do? Well, you have a choice. I’m reminded of a wonderful video of a severely disabled puppy, completely unaware of his spastic meanderings, and whose human family not only were completely accepting of his disability (with which he coped admirably) but who had only praise for his resilience and courage. Wow. I was so impressed, not just with the dog, but with the family’s attitude.

Could we perhaps adopt a similar attitude when faced with those around our Thanksgiving table? Could we perhaps pay as little attention as possible to their inconvenient foibles, and just be grateful for their unique gifts? After all, talkers usually have something of interest to you buried somewhere in all that blather and don’t require more than the occasional “oh really” or “how nice” to make them happy.

Your Aunt Gertrude expects the royal treatment: well, she doesn’t disrupt anything, she just sits there contentedly once you’ve brought her that special cup of Oolong tea. She’s actually a great example of self-care. OK, taken to the extreme, but still, an example you can learn from.

Children’s energy can be channeled into something other than wanton destruction of decorations or annoying the cat: plan ahead to provide them with games so that you can enjoy their natural exuberance rather than fear it.

There really is something to appreciate in every human being (actually every being) you encounter. Make this a truly memorable and wonderful Thanksgiving by looking for that something in every one of your friends and relatives. You will be all the richer for it.

 

Celebrate International Day of Happiness--Every Day

March 20 is International Day of Happiness. Instead of feeling good for just one day, why not take the steps to make every day the happiest and most fulfilling it can be?

If doing what you can to be happy sounds like too much effort, the alternative can literally shorten your life. In a 2011 study, researchers at University College, London, gauged the happiness levels of people ages 52 to 79 by monitoring their feelings several times over a day. Then, five years later, the researchers examined how many of those people had died. The result? Older people who are happy have a 35 percent lower risk of dying over a five-year period than unhappy people. Even after the researchers controlled for medical conditions including cancer and diabetes, and health risks such as smoking, being happy was still linked with living longer.

Besides being happy, those who live longer are also grateful. Research out of UC Berkeley found that, regardless of life circumstances, grateful people are more satisfied with their lives than people who aren’t grateful. Highly grateful people have stronger immune systems, are sick less often, have lower blood pressure and experience less depression and anxiety, all of which are strongly linked to greater longevity.

Add a healthy dose of appreciation and optimism and you are well on your way to seeing the world in a happier light. Start by making a list of all that you appreciate. It may take you a while if you’re not used to this exercise, but it’s well worth the effort in terms of the value-add to your long-term well-being and future happiness.

For example, you can be grateful that you are living on this amazing planet, that your health enables you to be active or that you have the love of family and friends. Whatever it is you are grateful for, embrace it.

Do this on March 20 and then try it again the next day, and the next. With not a lot of effort, you’ll see a positive change in the way you look at the world and those around you.

To learn more about the mind-physical body connection, go to https://youtu.be/7xcgq4TbGgA