The Secret

I've always tried to be a positive person. Tried to be tactful about something negative. Tried to look for the good in unhappy situations. Tried to cheer up the sad. Tried to be a shoulder to cry or vent on. I was really good at positivity (is that a word?) when I was younger and my kids were smaller and had smaller problems.

As the years have crept up on me and my children have grown, I've become less of a positive person and more of a snark. More pessimistic. More sarcastic. More "half-empty" less "half-full". More judgmental. More cynical.

I decided today that I have to change back into the positive person I think I used to be.

If I want to live longer, be happier, be healthier, and just plain more pleasant, negativity needs to become a thing of the past for me. You see the light when on today as I was sitting in a crowded high school auditorium listening to a fabulous presenter about how "worksheets don't grow dendrites". Her comments were very applicable to the classroom - as they were intended to be - but her comments were also highly applicable to typical non-teaching-professional as well.

Did you know you will live 8 years longer if you laugh at least 3 times a day?
Did you know that your brain doesn't recognize the difference between a fake laugh and a real belly jiggling one?
Did you know that everyone needs to wake up each day with a purpose in mind for the day?
Did you know that people who lose their purpose tend to die within 24 months of that lost purpose?
Did you know that most famous comedians live or have lived well into their 80s?
Did you know that most professional successful athletes use visualization to make themselves more confident?
Did you know that it is imperative for your health to get at least 7 - 9 hours of sleep each night for important body repairs?
Did you know that you were born with 100 billion neurons in your brain?
Did you know that when you learn something new you grow a new dendrite? (It's part of your brain that talks to the axons which promotes healthy synapses... makes you smarter.)

I love teaching, but some days it's so nice to be the one being TAUGHT! Thank heavens for October Idaho Teacher Inservice Days! Thank heavens for Dr. Marcia Tate! Thank heavens for her secret! I'm sharing it with you, right here, right now, in hopes of passing along the vital information I learned today... Hope you can use it in your life!

The Secret

Find something to look forward to
Something to love
And, something to do!
Don't worry! Be happy!
Eat as you should
Exercise makes your life all good!

Here's to having a purpose and being positive.