A special welcome to any of you who are stopping by for the first time because you heard me on your local radio station. For those of you who missed it, I was pontificating about lowering Holiday Stress. A FREE PDF download is in the Boomer Boutique (above menu bar, right side): Stressing Down for the Holidays…25 tips to peel you off the ceiling. There is also one on how to visit sick people called: When Do-Gooding goes Bad, it’s worth a read if you and your church, synagogue visit home bound folks this time of year.

Meanwhile, I thought I’d share with you a report by Robert Emmons, PHD at the University of California. He did a study to see if being grateful changed people in any way. He used three groups. One was encouraged to concentrate on things that went wrong during their days. One was to simply notice what they had to do each day. The third group was told to look for things they could be grateful for each day. The result?

People who practiced gratefulness were more positive about life in general, had less illnesses, got more sleep, had less anxiety or depression and were more likely to help other people.

Another recent study showed that the increase of ADD, depression and learning disabilities in children was directly linked to a LACK of a personal relationship with significant people in their life and a sense of spirituality. So what will make a December to Remember for you and others?

Spending time with people; talking, sharing an activity and listening to what they say about who they are. Ask questions such as, “If you could do anything in life, what would it be?” “If you could know anything in the world, what would you want to know?” or “What is the most fun you’ve ever had?”

Spend every meal being thankful for 3 things in your life. Children, neighbors, music, art, flowers, the list is endless. This is not an exercise in avoiding reality as some would suggest. We all know cars breakdown, people die and life has nasty turns. But if you concentrate on the positive, you can actually boost your energy to face the difficult things.

Remember this season to be joyful. I mean joy-FULL. Laugh so hard Eggnog comes out of your nose (or almost). See a funny movie, invite friends over, go out to the streets and offer food and clothing to people who have stopped caring about living.

Make it a December to Remember by focusing on what you have, not on what’s missing. And eat a gingerbread man cookie…head first. LOL

Bookmark this: