How to Holiday
Nap like a cat.
Cats sleep a bit more than half the day. Set your goal this holiday for storing up – or catching up – on sleep.
This holiday season, get caught up on your sleep. If you are chronically under slept, don’t expect to get caught up with one night of eight hours of sleep. It takes lots of extra sleep plus going through a few days of headaches for your body to catch up. It is a myth that you can get by on less than 8 hours of sleep a night.* The human body – and mind – needs all eight hours to get the benefits of the last sleep cycle, where the repair happens, that helps you function really well. Naps can be a great way to catch up on sleep too. Just make sure you do not nap in the later part of your day. Depending on whether you are a night owl or early bird, you might set a no-nap ban after noonish or 3 pm. Happy Holiday Napping! *Matthew Walker. (2017) Why We Sleep. Simon and Schuster.
Do the Daily Count.
Cats take a surveillance of their territory every day.
Take a clue from our feline friends and spend some time each day walking around your home, garden or block and appreciate each thing that catches your eye. Adding appreciation to your daily moving inventory will bring you cheer. It can be a simple as appreciating the fact of running water in your home, the beauty and strength of a tree, and the comfort of your bed or couch.
Enjoy the beauty that is you. Cats do, why shouldn’t you?
Whether you think of your self as too short or tall, too fat or thin, too old or young, too unhealthy or anything else, the fact is that you are beautiful. You are alive. Life is a beautiful thing. Give yourself the gift of pausing at least once a day – more often when you catch yourself thinking negative things about your appearance - and deeply appreciating your own beauty.
Look Forward to Something.
Looking forward to something helps to frame your mind abound what you want in your life instead of what you do not want. It also bends you towards optimism.
Looking forward to something is a mindset. Like a dog looks forward with great relish to its daily walk, you can decide to look forward to something routine in your day, like settling down to watch a show at night. Making plans to do something fun every week, like an outing in the wilderness or meeting a loved one for a walk and tea, can also help frame you towards the positive. Planning a trip in the future that you have always wanted to take can be uplifting. Reflecting on the good time you had adds to your uplift. Maybe dogs don’t do this, but you can. Think about what you enjoyed about your time on the couch being entertained, muse about how much you enjoyed your time in the wild or with your friend, and contemplate a dream trip you took. Equally important to planning and reflecting is enjoying yourself in the moment when you do your planned fun thing.
Never pass up an opportunity for affection.
F re e H u gs
It’s really as simple as that – never pass up an opportunity for affection. But that does not mean it is easy. Affection can be expressed through a hug, but also a kind word, an open heart, a smile, a thank you. When someone offers these to you, soak up the love. Whenever you can, give some affection.
Listen.
Dogs may find listening easy, but for most of us humans, it is hard work. Listing without waiting for the other person to shut up so you can have your say is about the hardest work there is for most people. One way to do this is set the goal for noticing what comes up in your mind when someone else is talking. Notice the thoughts and the feelings of urgency, importance, agreement or annoyance. Try to bring your focus back on what the other person is saying, and let go of what you want to say. Try to listen without judgement. If you can do this, you will give a tremendous gift to the other person, and to yourself.
How to Holiday. A gift from the Happiness Alliance. We wish you great peace, joy, contentment and relaxation. Find more tools and resource for your happiness at happycounts.org. Because you deserve to be happy.