A New Page

As much as I love Christmas, once it is over I am anxious to have things return to normal.  Our tree is hauled away and all the ornaments and decorations are packed and put away before New Year`s Day.  It seems that once Christmas day is over, the things that were so beautiful the day before are now in the way and cluttering up the house. I carefully place each treasured ornament and decoration in its storage container, knowing I will enjoy them all over again next Christmas. Perhaps it is because New Year`s Day is all about a fresh start, new hopes and plans for the incoming year,  that I feel the need to clear the house of Christmas reminders.  Somehow it seems you shouldn`t start the new year by putting away last year`s decorations.  Maybe by doing this, it feels like two separate special holidays.  I guess I`m not really sure why I do this, but by the time we ring in the new year at our house, all evidence of Christmas is gone (other than pine needles which seem to find new places to hide each year). 

 I enjoy spending New Year`s Eve and day with family and friends.  There is no better way to welcome the new year than by spending it with people you love. Together, you say good-bye to the old year and share hope for the new year.  

2014 stretches out in front of us, a blank page not yet filled, full of promise and hope.  We make resolutions – some we keep, some are forgotten by the next day.  Each year we think this will be the perfect year.  And while each year may not be perfect after all, we need to reflect on and remind ourselves of all the good things in our lives.  We live in a country where we enjoy incredible freedoms and social programs, everyone has access to education and employment. We live in a society which, for the most part, values family and children.  We have relatively quick and easy access to medical help when we need it. We have time for leisure and to enjoy ourselves. We are so fortunate and rich in ways that people in many other countries can only dream about. 

 No matter how 2014 turns out, we should enjoy our good fortune and appreciate the many blessings we have. Be sure to make time to spend with family and friends.  Volunteer to help someone in need.  Make time for yourself.  Do the things you love to do. Sometimes we need to make our own happiness to have the perfect year.

 I hope you have a wonderful start to the new year with people you love and that 2014 brings you joy, happiness and health.   Starting a new page . . . it’s a good thing!            

Christmas

I love Christmas!  I love the hustle and bustle, the shopping, deciding on that perfect gift, and the excitement in the air no matter where you are.  I enjoy gift wrapping, decorating the house, putting up the trees (yes, trees, one real and one artificial) and Christmas baking.  However, my favorite part of Christmas is getting together with friends over the holiday season and spending Christmas Day with family.  Celebrating with them has always been something I truly enjoy and it is what makes this season so special to me. 

As children, our family tradition was to gather at our parents’ home for Christmas Day.  After Mom moved into an apartment and could no longer fit our ever-growing family into her small quarters, my home became the gathering place for our Christmas feast.  I love the large, noisy family who comes into our home each year. Our house rings with laughter and the comfort that comes from being with people you love. We enjoy that comfortable and peaceful feeling of being with family who know each other better than anyone else ever could – and still like each other!  My husband’s family gathers at his sister’s home each Christmas Eve and the love and the joy of being together is evident there too.

It seems that each year we gain a new little person into our clan and over the years have welcomed new family members in the form of boyfriends and girlfriends, who later become husbands and wives.  Of course, there have been years in which a loved one is no longer with us and his or her presence is missed.  Such is the circle of life that we welcome new life in our circle and we say goodbye to those who life’s work is completed. 

I always marvel at the inter-generational exchanges and how age doesn't matter at a family gathering. We all have something in common: each other.  It is always amazing to see young people deep in discussion with much older relatives, and older relatives taking interest in the lives and gossip of younger people. Young and old, we are all related and we learn from each other.  I am often struck by how diverse we are. We are all so alike and yet so different from each other. We bask in unconditional love and know that each of us is an important part of our family.  That is the magic of family, and it becomes even more magical at Christmas.

Over the years, our group as grown as we married and had children, and now those children are married with babies of their own.  I believe the best gift we can give our children is the security of family.  I hope my children have benefited from being a part of a close extended family and that they and their cousins will carry on the tradition of the big family gatherings.

To each and every one of you, best wishes for a very Merry Christmas.  May your Christmas celebration be perfect and leave with wonderful memories to cherish through-out the year.

Enjoying a safe and happy holiday season . . .  it's a good thing! 

The Village

Last week-end I set up my Christmas village.  Every Christmas, when I line up the houses, make sure the lights are all working and arrange the people and accessories so they are just perfect, my thoughts never fail to go back to when I was a very young girl and to the woman who instilled in me the joy of having a little Christmas village, Mrs. Richard.

Frank and Henriette Richard were friends with my parents.  They spent a lot of time together, visiting back and forth a great deal.  The Richards were wonderful people and were a part of many of our family events.

 One of my most vivid memories of Mrs. Richard is of a holiday supper she invited my family to. In my child’s mind, she had a wonderful sense of style and I loved everything in her home.  She had many beautiful ornaments and objects on display for the Christmas season.  But what caught my eye the most that night was her Christmas village. The ceramic houses were beautiful, each one beaming brightly through the darkness of Mrs. Richard’s dimly-lit living room. The colourful lights shining through stained-glass windows captivated me and I kept returning to the display time and time again over the evening.  I could not get enough of Mrs. Richard’s colourful display.  With each house lit up, I could see each detail of the little village. Through the windows, I could see the interior of the church, of restaurants and of homes. I loved how the tiny town glowed and twinkled.  I had never in my short life seen anything like it. I loved Mrs. Richard's village and I decided that I would have one too when I grew up. A few short years after that Christmas meal, Mr. and Mrs. Richard moved away to British Columbia and I never saw them again.

I kept that I promise to myself.  I purchased a little plastic village the first Christmas after I left home.  Each year, I took it out of its box, plugged it in, admiring its beauty.  Eventually, the plastic village gave way to a beautiful set of ceramic houses, just like the ones I remember Mrs. Richard having.  My village has grown over the years.  Most of the pieces were gifts given to me by my family.  I write the name of the person who gave me each building and accessory so that I will never forget who gave me each piece.  Every Christmas season, one of the first things I do is to set up my beautiful village. I love each house, store, restaurant and the people who inhabit the village.  As I plug in each house and place each character, my mind wanders back to that little girl who gazed so lovingly and longingly at Mrs. Richard's creation. She is long gone now, and never knew how her winter scene would stay with me and that someday I would have my own village, just as I had promised myself so many years ago. She would never guess that, after all these years, I think of her each Christmas as I set up my own village, inspired by hers.  This year is no different.  As I set my display again, I silently thanked Mrs. Richard for her inspiration and wished her a very Merry Christmas. 

 Keeping holidays traditions alive . . . it’s a good thing!

The Season For Sharing

I have never outgrown my excitement and love for Christmas.   I enjoy the frantic cleaning, baking and shopping that lead up to the holidays.  I think I am more excited when I am wrapping gifts than the people who receive the gifts are when unwrapping them.  Most of all, I love getting together with family and friends. The best Christmas gift for me is to have a house full of people I love to help me celebrate the season, especially on Christmas Day itself.  For me, there is no other time of year like this one. I can’t help but be a little sad on Christmas Day if my house is not full of people.  The aroma of food cooking and laughter ringing throughout the house and decorations and lights sparkling is what makes my Christmas special.  

I never really stopped to appreciate how fortunate I am to have that love and support until a chance conversation with a lady in my doctor’s waiting room.  We began to discuss the fact that the holidays were coming upon us very quickly and she sighed and quietly said “I used to love Christmas, now I dread it.  It’s the loneliest time of the year for me”.   She then continued to tell how her children all live far away and have busy lives of their own.  Whereas her friends normally fill in the void most of the year, they are all busy during the holidays entertaining their own families and don’t seem to have time for her.

Her comments made me more aware of the loneliness of some people at Christmas time. Sometimes we become so wrapped up in our lives that we take our good fortune for granted and we forget that others are not so fortunate.  As wonderful as this time of year is for those who enjoy the love and support of family and friends, it is that lonely for those who are alone. There are people who remember this and do their share to help everyone enjoy the season.  In our city, the Friendship Centre and the Bernice Sayese Centre both offer a holiday meal to those who otherwise might not have good food and friendship at this time of year.  At my workplace last year, one of my colleagues arranged for us to provide gifts and food for a local couple and their four children.  Many service clubs ensure that families in Prince Albert and area have food for their holiday meal and that the children have gifts to open. Some organizations or individuals make it their mission to visit those who are alone.  There is opportunity to brighten someone’s festive season everywhere, such as in our schools, senior homes and hospitals. 

There are so many people who are overwhelmed with loneliness during this time of year.  We can’t change the world and make everyone happy, but we can try to bring joy to one person or one family.  Those of us who have family and friends, a roof over our heads and good food need to remember those who don’t.   I like the concept of “adopting” a family.  It is my hope that, not only providing joy to a family in need today, the children will in turn remember the less fortunate when they are adults and will pay it forward.  In that way, this is truly a gift that “keeps on giving”. 

The holiday season is a wonderful time of the year. Remembering that the greatest gift is the gift of sharing,. .  . it’s a good thing!

Saskatchewan Pride

I was there.  I was at the game last week.  Yes, THAT game.  I was fortunate to be sitting at Mosaic Stadium to watch the Grey Cup championship, for what turned out to be a once-in-a-lifetime game.  To be there, with over 40,000 Rider fans, and watch the Riders win the Grey Cup at home was the best fairy-tale ending any Rider fan could ask for.  And while there is much to be said about Darian Durant’s great game, Geroy Simon’s first Grey Cup touchdown, Kory Sheets’ perfect catch when Darian fumbled the foot ball, and just how well the entire team played that game, and how our green hearts filled with pride watching them play, there was something else that happened at the game that I have never experienced before and may never again experience.  There was a special energy which filled the stadium and you just had to be there to feel it.  The energy that filled the stadium was so intense, you would almost think it would have had a green glow to it.

When it became clear that we were going to win the game, emotion and pride showed in the faces and actions of the fans throughout the stadium.  Some people broke down and cried, others cheered until their voices gave out and others just stood and watched,  almost unable to believe that our collective dream had been realized – and at home, to boot.   After it was all over, I didn’t want to leave.  I wanted to stay there until the last player had left the field.  As I looked around, I realized that many other fans felt the same way.  Few were leaving the stands, savouring the moment, making it last just a little longer.  If my husband hadn’t insisted on leaving because he was cold, I’m sure I would have been one of the last fans to leave.  It was such a special moment.  And that energy – I wanted to bask in it as long as I could and I know that most Rider fans felt the same.

I think part of the feeling in the stadium that night came not only from the win, but from years of cheering on a team who rarely won the championship, and of growing up in Saskatchewan where you were a fan of the Roughriders, whether or not you watched football. When I was a child, my Dad came home with new truck.  The truck was green and white, and across the side of the box were the words “Big Green Machine”.  I remember asking him what those words meant and he replied that the words referred to our football team, and this was part of a promotion the automobile company was doing.  He said a small portion of the money for the vehicle went to the Riders. I asked him why he had bought that truck because he never watched football and he was a huge hockey fan.  He replied, “I know.  I don’t even understand the game, and I don’t understand how the scoring works. But it’s our team, and we have to support them”.  That, I think, says it all.  It explains how every person who is born and raised in Saskatchewan feels. Whether you follow football or not, everyone knows where the Riders are in the standings and whether they won or lost their last game.  That is why Rider fans are found everywhere across the country, they take that part with them when they leave the province.   If you ever lived in Saskatchewan, chances are great that you are a Saskatchewan Roughrider fan.

 I think it was that which created that incredible energy last Sunday, that thing that is almost a birthright to us.  It was Rider pride bursting at the seams, filling every inch of Mosaic Stadium.  It is something I will never forget and am so glad I was there for the 2013 Grey Cup game in Regina. Go Riders!

Loving our Riders . . .  it's a good thing!

Marathon of Hope

In this blog, I often urge readers to strive to make a difference, and I often comment on how one person can cause change.  I really believe this, but sometimes I need a little reminder.  One a recent trip to Vancouver, I was given such a reminder and I was once again amazed at the difference one person can make.  This realization came in the form of the Terry Fox Memorial Plaza at BC Place.  We always hear about, and many of us take part in, annual Terry Fox runs which are held all over the world.  And while we all know the story about Terry’s determination to raise money for cancer research and his attempt to cross Canada on foot in an effort to do so, we tend to forget how it all started.  I think we often forget that the millions of dollars raised and the awareness of cancer and cancer research which seem so common place now was not true when Terry began his Marathon of Hope. 

The memorial to Terry Fox was created by visual artist and author, Douglas Coupland.  Coupland wrote a book about Terry and then was commissioned to create the artistic tribute.  The memorial consists of a series of four bronze statues of Terry, each one bigger than the other to create the illusion of Terry running.  The poignant inscription explains that the statues face Stanley Park, which was where Terry intended to end his marathon by dipping his foot in the Pacific Ocean, having begun by dipping his foot in the Atlantic Ocean. 

But it was the long inscription on a plague by the artist which reminded me  how one person can make a difference in the world – in this case, a very young man who decided to take on the mission of creating cancer awareness and raising money for cancer research.  According to Coupland, when Terry was diagnosed with cancer it was mostly a “taboo” topic, people simply did not talk about it.  Also at that time, very little money was being raised for research, especially in Canada.  Terry decided he would attempt to change that by walking across Canada, even though one of his legs had been amputated.  But even more incredibly, he decided he would run the equivalent of one marathon a day.  As we all know, in September, 1980 after running 143 days and 5,373 kilometers, Fox was forced to stop his Marathon of Hope because his cancer had returned.  In June, 1981 Terry Fox passed away, but his dream did not die.  It lives on in the millions of people who have taken part in Terry Fox runs all over the world in the thirty-two years since he died and in the millions of dollars raised for cancer research.  All of this, because one person decided to make a difference. 

What struck me the most was a line in Coupland’s plague which ponders that had Terry Fox not attempted the Marathon of Hope, had he taken better care of himself and not devoted so much to the run, his cancer might not have returned.  He might have gone on to live a long life and have a successful career, and he might have married and had children.  Not only did this one person change the way the world sees cancer and cancer research, he made the ultimate sacrifice in doing so. 

Terry Fox inspired fellow British Columbian’s Steven Fonyo and Rick Hansen to create their own marathons, as well as millions of people who run in his memory every year.  Remembering that one person can make a difference and change the world.. . . it’s a good thing! 

Pet Perks

          Organizations such as New Hope or the SPCA do amazing work. These compassionate and dedicated rescuers and caretakers of lost, hurt and abused animals do so much to ensure they are well taken care of.  The dogs we have had over the years were “rescue dogs”.  We enjoyed and loved them and never did we regret saving them.  Besides providing their owners with love and joy, I have learned that owning a pet is actually good for your health!

          Researchers at several universities, including the University of London, the State University of New York and Henry Ford Hospital have found there are several perks to owning a pet. Besides the obvious reason of the benefits of the love between a pet and its owner, there are several health reasons which make owning a pet good for you and your children!
          Researchers have found that children with dogs take 360 more steps a day and exercise more each day. They believe owning a dog could help in the battle against to childhood obesity. Other research indicates that cuddling with a furry friend helps children relax. Petting animals actually slows down the heart rate and makes you feel calmer. Adult pet owners had lower blood pressure when responding to stress than adults who do not own pets. Studies have also shown that taking care of their pets teaches kids empathy. Pets help children and adults cope with stress such as moving or dealing with a divorce. Therapy for traumatized Bosnian children included pet therapy. It works because pets provide companionship and unconditional love. As well, they encourage play and laughter. This helps adults dealing with depression.  Pets can make them laugh and play when nothing else works.  Special care homes and nursing homes have discovered this as well and many now have resident dogs and cats.
          The biggest surprise to me was finding out that children living with a pet are 50 percent less likely to develop allergies! Studies done at Henry Ford Hospital and the Medical College of George indicates that this may be due to compounds called endotoxins found in the mouths of cats and dogs. Kids are exposed to them through petting and playing with their animals.
          There are many benefits to owning a pet, but I think the best reason is to bask in the love of our furry friends.  If there are other health benefits to owning a pet, that is a bonus.
          So, go ahead and rescue a pet.  You will be loved unconditionally and you may even improve your health because of it.  Loving a pet . . .  it’s a good thing!

That First Day of School

Just before I sat down to write today, I saw my neighbor leaving to walk her daughter home from school on her first day in grade two.  I spoke to her for a few moments and she described her daughter’s excitement at returning to school and her own anxiety at sending her off on that first day.  The first day of school is certainly an emotionally charged day for students and for their parents.

          For families, the start of the school year signals a return to a regular routine after the summer off.  It is also the beginning of the “busy season” as sports, dance and many other activities begin,  and life begins once again to rush at a quicker pace.  As I walked through local stores during the past couple weeks, I saw many parents and their children purchasing supplies for school, trying on new school clothes and heard more than one argument over which item to buy. Although it is a little sad to be nearing the end of summer, I think everyone appreciates a routine to regular hours and scheduled activities.
          When I was a student, I waited in anxious anticipation as the new school year approached. It seemed that each year the summer holidays sped by faster. Suddenly it was time to return to school and with it came all the fear, nervousness and uncertainty.  I was always very nervous that first day: would I like my teacher?  Would he/she like me?  Would my friends still like me?  Had Mom packed a good lunch? What if the whole years turns out to be awful and unbearable?  How will I know which bus is mine when I come out of school at the end of the day?
          Everything wasn’t sad or awful.  There were some happy things about going back to school. Each year I would get a new set of clothes that would usually arrive in a huge package from Sears, which was how most farm families shopped.  Mom would pick out our clothes and surprise us with it when the parcel arrived.  Once I was a little older, I would carefully go through the Fall and Winter Catalogue (which, of course, arrived in June) and pick out my new clothes. I loved new clothes! It almost made it worth going through the pain of that awful first day of school.
          I also loved shopping for new school supplies. Mom always made a special celebration of writing our names on all our new supplies. She would set aside an afternoon for "marking" and we kids would stack our supplies in front of us, and we would write our names on everything (maybe this is where I developed that love I have for the "new book" smell).  If Dad was home,  he would sharpen out pencils and scratch the paint off in a spot close to the eraser so that our names could be written on each pencil. Despite my discomfort at facing that first day of school, I enjoyed putting on my new clothes, grabbing my new books and waiting for the bus.
          Loving - and fearing - the first day of the new school year . . .  it’s a good thing!

 

A New Way to Love Your Life

In a recent blog, I wrote about ten things which have been scientifically proven to make you happy. One of the suggestions was to “mentally subtract something good from your life”. This idea intrigued me, so I decided to look into it in a little more detail.

Most of us spend time thinking about good things that have not happened to us and the bad things that have happened. The idea here is to think about something good that has occurred in your life and think about what your life would be like if it had not happened. This is called “counter-factual” thinking. In one study, students at a university were asked to remember the events which had led them to choosing the college they were attending. They were then asked to think about what would have been different in their lives had they chosen a different university. The results showed that the students gave a higher rating to their choice and were happier with their decision when they considered the alternative. So, by mentally removing a good thing which had happened in their lives, the students realized how much they appreciated the choice they had made.

When you look back over your life, there are people who are special whether it is your spouse, your co-workers or friends. How different would your life have been had you not met those people and if your paths had never crossed? By imagining your life without those special persons, you gain a new appreciation for them. Rather than thinking “what if” and desiring something that you do not have, by changing your thinking in this manner, you can now appreciate what you do have. Rather than wishing for an abstract, you imagine what might have been if you had not had the opportunity of meeting that special person. According to several studies, this way of thinking leads to a greater satisfaction with the direction of your life.

We all come to forks in our paths and we are challenged to pick one. Counter-factual thinking makes you realize that you are happy with the fork you chose and less questioning about the fork you did not take. What if you had chosen to stay home rather than go out with friends the night you met the person who would go on to be your life partner? What if you had chosen a different job when you were offered the one you now love and get personal satisfaction from? What if you had never met your best friend?

The University of California at Berkley conducted an experiment with student volunteers. The students were divided into two groups and asked to write an essay on how they met their closest friend. One group was told to answer using only factual details (the factual group). The other group was asked to answer by reflecting on how their lives would be different if they had never met their friend (the counterfactual group). Those students in the counterfactual group viewed their friendship as more meaningful and significant. The students in the factual group did not experience that feeling of appreciation and gratitude. 

Sometimes you have to imagine how different you life would be if you had made different choices in order to truly appreciate what you have.  Loving your life . . . it’s a good thing!

City Workers to the Rescue

Those of you who have read this column know that I love stories about people helping others and expecting nothing in return. This story is even more special because it happened right here in Prince Albert.

A bridal shower was held recently at the Art Hauser Centre for Shannon Hryhor. As part of the decorations, a beautiful cake was decorated with two broaches which had belonged to Shannon’s two grandmothers. Her mother, Lois Hryhor, took charge of the broaches after they were removed from the cake and later accidently threw them away in the garbage. When she realized what she had done, she was sick with worry that she had lost these precious mementos, but there was nothing she could do until Monday morning when staff returned to the Art Hauser Center.

After what I am sure was a sleepless night, Lois went to the Art Hauser Centre on Monday morning where she relayed to a city employee what had happened. The employee immediately took Lois to the dumpsters and was under the assumption that it had not yet been emptied. However, upon opening the doors to the dumpsters, they discovered they had indeed been emptied. Lois felt all was lost and that she would never find the broaches.

The city employee, however, was not ready to give up quite yet. She contacted the Public Works Department and was able to track down the collector who had picked up the garbage at the Art Hauser Centre. He met Lois at the landfill and informed her that he knew which bags he had picked up from the Centre. He located the bags and even held them for Lois while she searched through them for the missing heirlooms. It didn’t take very long for Lois to find the broaches. Needless to say, Lois and Shannon are very grateful to the City of Prince Albert employees who went out of their way to help them find their precious items.

This is an amazing story of people going above and beyond the call of duty. It seems that so often people complain about city workers and rarely give them credit for a job well done. They do a lot of good work for which they do not get credit for, so I am very pleased that this story has received a fair amount of publicity.  Because of the kindness and dedication of our city employees, the Hryhor family have the special souvenirs of their grandmothers back in their hands. Perhaps someday Shannon’s daughter will use her great-grandmothers’ broaches on her own shower cake. I am sure that Lois and Shannon will pass on to her the story of that day when City of Prince Albert employees help rescue the jewellery from the landfill.

People going above and beyond the call of duty to make other people happy . . .  it’s a good thing!

Joni's Garden

 

 

I just knew I would keep going back each year.  The peacefulness and beauty found in Joni Hladun’s garden calls out to me, and so it was that I and my sister showed up on her doorstep last week to enjoy her wonderful creation.  What makes the visit even more special is Joni’s obvious joy in sharing her amazing garden.  She guides you through it with descriptions of where items originated, who built what, which artist created a painting or sculpture, often punctuated by her infectious laughter.  This woman is as amazing as her garden.

            The space in front and behind the Hladun home is a whimsical world of plants, flowers and ornaments.  You can feel the magic of this special place the moment you step out of your vehicle and look up toward the house.  No matter where your eyes turn, there is beauty in the form of plants, decorations and art.  One of my favorite items in the front yard is an old door which has been cleverly converted into a plant holder. 

            Walking through the gate which leads to the backyard is like being on a magical journey.  Again this year, as I did last year, I found myself walking around the yard several times.  Each time around the yard brought something different to my attention.  The yard is breathtaking!  There is everything from angel statues to wagon wheels, fountains, pottery and unique bird houses (built by Joni’s husband Ben).  There are flowers of every kind.  Joni told us there are over four hundred flower pots in her yard.  She has every kind of flower in her yard, shade-loving or sun-loving depending on their location, each one showing off their beautiful foliage and colour.

            Everyday items have been re-purposed into planters and decorations.  Joni has taken freezer baskets and turned them into beautiful handing plant containers.   There are mirrors and paintings throughout her yard.  Trunks are filled with plants or pottery and sit among the plants.   The cheerful paintings blend in so well that they become part of the landscape.  There are several ceramic sun faces watching over the property.  An over one hundred-year old tree whose branches cover the entire back yard lets in sunlight at various locations and intervals during the day.  At the base of the tree, Joni has gathered and arranged a collection of white pottery and statues.  Several paintings are hung on the tree trunk, reminding us once again that artwork is not only for the walls of your house. 

          When you are enjoying the beauty of this wonderful place, it is hard to believe you are only half-a-block from a busy city street.  From the moment you arrive until you leave, there is a smile on your face.  This is truly a little piece of paradise. Spaces that are good for your soul . . . it's a good thing!

Scientifically Happy

Did you know that scientists have found ten things that contribute to happiness?  The writers of the website PSYBLOG have researched studies done by various scientists and universities around the world and have put together a list of ten things that have been scientifically proven to make you happy.  Who knew that the study of happiness was even a science?  According to PSYBLOG, doing at least some of the ten activities each day will cause you to feel more positive and happier.  They claim that if you do this for a week, your mood will lift and you will have a brighter and happier outlook on life.  So, what are the ten activities?

1.     Exercise

Exercising helps you feel better mentally, increases your energy level and reduces tension.  It can be a simple exercise, such as walking, but do something physical every day.  You will feel better and enjoy life more.

2.     The Power of Listening to Music

Music influences our moods.  If we are sad, it can cheer us up and if we are happy, it can make us even happier.  So, listen to your favorite tunes as often as you can.

3.      Mentally subtract a positive event which has happened in your life.

How could deleting a happy event from your memory make you happier?  It works because when think what your life might be like if this good event had never occurred, you realize how fortunate you are.  How different your life might have been if you had never met your partner or a special friend or if that job had never been offered to you. Mentally subtracting a positive or good event from your life actually makes you appreciate it all the more.

4.     Send a thank you message

One of our most powerful emotions is gratitude.  You can evoke this emotion by sending a thank you to someone who has helped you, even in a small way.  One study found that practicing gratitude can increase happiness by 25%.  Another study found that by sending only three thank-you’s (whether by email, card or text) over a three week period reliably increased happiness. 

5.     Spend money -  on someone else.

Money can make you happy – but only if you spend it on someone else!  Spending on someone else makes us feel better about ourselves.  It also helps create stronger friendships and people with strong social ties are happier.

6.     Plan a event to look forward to 

The anticipation of an upcoming event is another powerful emotion.  Remember the days leading up to Christmas or your birthday as a child?  So, plan something and try to always have something to look forward to. 

7.     Make plans with friends

Even better than making plans, is making plans with friends.  You have the joy of anticipation and you are contributing to keeping the friendship strong.   People are happiest when they have a strong social circle.

8. Make a list of three good things every day

Each evening, spend a few minutes thinking about three good things that happened that day.  In one study of people suffering from depression, this practice decreased their sadness in a matter of weeks.  Even for people who are not depressed, making this list each evening adds to their happiness.

9.     Do something that you are good at

Scientists call this your “signature strength” and can be anything from social, physical or sporting skills or anything that you excel at.  Whatever it is, try to do it every day.  Being able to do something really well makes people enjoy life more.

            10.      Have a happy daydream

We all tend to daydream and we can use daydreaming to make us more joyful by remembering positive things and events in our lives.  This practice is called “life-savouring strategies” and can give us a much needed boost to go on with our days.

So, there you have it:  a list of ten things scientists say will make you happier.  It can’t hurt to try at least some of the items and who knows, it might make you happier!  Doing all the right things to be happy . . . it's a good thing!

Saskatchewan Day

I hope you are enjoying your Saskatchewan Day long week-end. Most of us enjoy the extra day off at the beginning of August without really thinking about what it means to live in Saskatchewan and how fortunate we are to do so.

 

While this summer has been tumultuous with sudden and heavy rainfall and an unprecedented number of floods and tornadoes, we should remember how privileged we are that this is the exception and not our usual weather. It has also been a year of impassable roads as our highways have been flooded over all around us.  However, this is unusual and hopefully something we will not see again for a long time.  Our neighbors to the south face tornadoes every year. We see them only a few times in our lifetime. They are terrifying, to say the least, and I am very happy that we do not have to suffer the destruction and terror of these violent storms each and every year.

Saskatchewan has four very distinct seasons. Most of us take these changes for granted. There is a beauty in each season which people in non-changing climates never get to experience. We have the opportunity to enjoy all types of sports and activities which change with each season. I know of a woman who was born and raised in Hawaii and now lives here. She absolutely refuses to visit her family during the winter because she loves the snow and doesn’t want to miss a minute of it. She is always telling people we don’t realize how wonderful it is to have the different seasons. Having grown up where the temperature is constant all year, she savours each change she experiences here as the seasons change.

Many of us who live here are descendents of people who have been in this province for only a few generations, and we know how hard they worked to give us the life we now enjoy. Many families around Prince Albert have received one-hundred year recognition for their family farms. Farming has changed a great deal, but in this province, many farms stay in the same family generation after generation.  The people who came before us were leaders in public health care, cooperatives and had a deep belief in helping each other - a true testament to our sense of community and sharing which has made this province so great.

Our winters may be too cold, our summers to short, and we may not be as sophisticated as some might wish us to be, but we wouldn’t have it any other way! 

Happy Saskatchewan Day!  Celebrating the greatness of our province . . . it's a good thing!

Regina's Good Samaritan

I love stories about good Samaritans.  I especially love those stories when that good Samaritan lives in Saskatchewan.  When I came across the story about the deed performed by  Darren Bezborotko from Regina, I just knew I had to share it in this column.

            Two years ago, Juanita Ledoux, also of Regina, had a very ill six year old son, Owen.  She had taken him to the doctor several times, and tests had been scheduled for Owen.  However, his condition deteriorated to the point that she decided she had to take her son to emergency at the Regina General Hospital.  She and Owen began to walk to the hospital, but he was so ill that he kept falling down on his hands and knees.  Juanita would help him up, but she could not carry him and so they slowly made their way down the street.

            Darren drove by and observed Juanita and Owen.  He stopped to ask them what was wrong.  When he realized how ill Owen was, he helped them into his vehicle and drove them to the hospital.  After Owen was admitted, Juanita was received the diagnosis.  Owen had terminal brain cancer. 

            Darren and Juanita parted after he dropped the two off at the hospital.  But they each thought of the other over the past two years.  Darren could not forget the image of the sick little boy and his mother as they tried to walk to the hospital.  He had said a prayer for him at the hospital doors, and often wondered what happened to them and how things had worked out for them.  He wondered if the little boy was ok.

            Juanita also thought of Darren.  She didn’t know his name, but she wanted to thank him for helping her that day and for bringing such kindness and light on that dark day two years ago.  Last week, Darren’s wife Trish saw a story on-line about Juanita’s search for her good Samaritan and Trish knew the story had to be about Darren. 

            Within a few days, Juanita and Darren once again met.  It was a poignant reunion.  No one knows how much time Owen has left, and both Juanita and Darren were so grateful that Darren had the opportunity to meet Owen once more.   Juanita was pleased to finally be able to thank the stranger who helped her and her son. 

            Juanita feels this is an important story.  She wants people to know how one simple act of kindness can make a world of difference to someone in pain.   Both families plan on staying in touch with each other.  A new friendship has been formed.

            How different this story would have been if Darren had simply driven away and chosen not to get involved.  His simple act of kindness gave Juanita the strength to make it through that terrible day and two families who likely would never have met, are now friends and share a special bond.   I wonder how many of us would have stopped to help this worried mother and very ill little boy?   I hope that by sharing this story, Juanita’s hope of people spreading kindness and helping each other will be realized.

             Being a good Samaritan to someone in need . . . it's a good thing!

Jessica Cox

  Sometimes a person becomes discouraged by what life throws at you.  At times like that, I think of Jessica Cox and suddenly my trials don’t seem so monumental and I know I can do whatever I set my mind to.  Jessica Cox is one of the amazing young people I have come across.  At the age of thirty, she has already accomplished things most people only dream of.  What makes this so remarkable is that Jessica was born without arms.  She has a rare defect which did not show up in any of her mother’s pre-natal tests.  Her parents decided at her birth that they would not feel sorry for her and that she would have a normal and fulfilling life.  Well, her life has been anything but normal -  because of her many accomplishments.

            As a child and a teenager, she was a dancer.  She learned to tie her shoes, write, type, brush her hair and do almost anything a person with arms can do, using her feet.  She has an unrestricted driver’s license and drives a vehicle without modifications, handling the steering wheel with her feet.  She pumps her own gas.  Jessica can put in and remove her contact lenses using her feet!  She was fitted with prosthetic arms but has not used them since the age of fourteen, finding it easier to use her feet.  She holds a Bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Arizona.  She has never let her missing arms destroy her spirit and love of life.

            Jessica is a certified scuba diver.  She holds a double black belt in Tai Kwon-Do.  But even more amazing, this incredible young woman is an accomplished pilot.  She flies a 415C Ercoupe airplane using her feet.  She is in the Guinness World Book of Records for being the first person ever certified to fly an airplane with only her feet.  She has a t-shirt she often wears when flying which says “Look Ma – no hands!”    Her accomplishments have also been included in Ripley’s Believe it or Not.

       Jessica works as a motivational speaker and has brought her message of hope and determination to twenty countries.  She encourages people to be creative and innovative, especially those with any type of disability.  Her slogan for her workshops is “Think outside the shoe”.  Her enthusiasm and determination are contagious.  She is a very strong spokesperson for the disabled. In her travels she has met many interesting people, including Pope Benedict, Harrison Ford, Senator John McCain and Ellen Degeneres. 

            What an inspirational woman she is.  Jessica Cox is a living proof that a person can do anything they set their mind to, sometimes by doing it in a different way from everyone else.  The important thing is to figure out how to do it, and then do it.  Staying positive, no matter what . . . it's a good thing!

A Moment Through The Fog

“That was my little girl,”  I heard my mother  telling another resident at the special care home as I walked down the hallway toward the elevator after visiting with her.  I had left her in the common area so she could watch television with the others before it was time for them to go to bed.  Her comment made me smile for a number of reasons.  First, “little” is not a good description of me, and secondly, I have not been a little girl for a few decades.  But more importantly, I had spent our visit thinking she did not know who I was and that her Alzheimer’s had robbed her of that memory today.  Most days she still remembers her children, but that evening she seemed to be searching when she looked at my face for a memory and for recognition.  Another reason her comment surprised me so much is that she now rarely forms complete sentences.  Alzheimer’s has made it almost impossible for her to find the right words for what she is trying to say, so it had been a very long time since I had heard her complete a sentence using all the correct words.  Therefore I was surprised when I overheard her comment.  As well, she spoke those words in a strong voice which drifted down the hallway to me, reminiscent of the past when her voice carried her words across the classrooms she taught and indeed down the hallways of the school.  I had not heard that strength in her voice for a long time as the disease has weakened her body and her words are softly spoken now.

I could hear Mom continue to speak and I started to slow down to hear what she was telling the other residents.  Then, on second thought, I decided not to; I decided that I didn’t want to hear any more.  I knew that what would follow likely would not make a lot of sense, as her lucid moments are becoming fewer all the time.   It felt good to hear her identify me and to complete her sentence in one connecting thought once again, almost like she didn’t have this terrible disease for at least a moment.  I didn’t want to ruin it.  I wanted to take her perfect memory, however fleeting, and her perfect sentence home with me to cherish that evening and to pretend for just a little while that everything was the way it used to be. 

I am constantly amazed at the puzzle that has become Mom’s memory, and at the holes and gaps that are now a part of her life.  As her Alzheimer’s progresses, we learn new things about this unrelenting disease and its effect on its victims and their families.  It seems that we are always taking another step in this battle we will never win. Her disease has progressed to the point where she now needs constant care and resides behind closed and locked doors for her own safety.  But every once in a while, her old personality comes through and reminds us that she is still there, behind the fog and the confusion.  Those are the moments we hang on to, even if, or especially when,  it means being called a little girl. 

Hanging on to the special moments . . .  it's a good thing!