According to the World Happiness Report, from
a money, happiness and satisfaction study in 2012, Denmark was at the top in
life satisfaction and work-life balance and
17th
in income. The United States ranked number 1 in income but ranked 12th in life
satisfaction and 29th in work
balance. This holiday season, how can we find the sense of happiness found in
Denmark?
This
reminds me of the Bobby McFerrin singing, “Don’t worry – be happy. Put a smile
on your face”. Also reminds me of the Cyndi Lauper singing, “Girls just wanna
have fun”. Perhaps those references are showing my age. However, that is okay,
as WebMd advises that people are happier, less stressed, and feel better about
themselves after age 50. With increased age comes wisdom and emotional
intelligence. Well I feel happier, less stressed, so two out of three isn’t
bad!
Now
WebMd seems to caution about extremes. “Sure, pleasure is great and you need
plenty of it, though there is more to happiness than racking up pleasurable
experiences. Psychologists studying the effects of positive emotions say
gratitude can boost our sense of happiness if we turn it into a conscious and
regular practice. Feeling gratitude, they say, is something you do (such as
expressing gratitude or keeping a gratitude journal), not something you wait
for!”
I
think I will start by shopping for a Christmas tree. Now in past years, when
our children were little, this was a mix of fun, and agony. The fun was the
idea of the family outing, decorating the tree, fresh pine smell. The agony was
my choice of Charlie Brown trees in an effort to squeeze dollar bills.
This
year I think I will (frequently) visit South Burlington parks and natural areas
to shop for the Christmas tree experience. I will take photos of Christmas
trees- no messing with tangled light cords, non-functional bulbs, no spilling
water, no sweeping pine needles, no worrying about money. The live growing pine and spruce trees, the
natural trees of green releasing aroma like pheromones make me feel happy,
alive, refreshed, and thankful we have such a spiritual and pleasure giving place to
boost our sense of happiness.
My
wish list to Santa is to have more residents feel pride and a claim of
ownership and display a maternal caring attitude and behavior towards our
public landscape - both the cityscape and the natural areas. For love of community,
may we take thankful pride and ownership in our public places-especially our
natural places?
Santa,
for those not yet familiar with nature parks: Red Rocks, Wheeler, Underwood, Dumont,
Centennial, Winooski Gorge Overlook, as well as the Awasiwi
trail, Muddy Brook Natural area, and regional WVPD parks, I ask that you leave
an invitation in their stocking; an invitation to park their gifts for a little
while, and go have fun outside.
It
is not too late to give a gift of an outdoor experience - to a loved one and to
yourself.
*
Storywalk: Take a walk in the Wheeler Nature Park to view the current story
walk, Let's Have a Tree Party by David Martin, Jeff Manders and John
Manders. See photos @ http://bit.ly/1OkmrWg
* The Secret to Danish Happiness: The Five Rules of "Hygge".
* A Map of Happiness Around the World
*Denmark is Considered the Happiest Country. You'll Never Guess Why.
#Optoutside REI's Black Friday pledge
View Bernie’s
images of South Burlington nature parks and more @ http://bit.ly/1SE0zc4 and follow
on Facebook @ South Burlington VT - Photos.
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| Many a snowmen are waiting for you to bring them back to life. |
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| Bring along a thermos of hot chocolate to sip while you watch and listen to nature. |
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