Reasons I Have to Smile

Sometimes when I feel overly stressed, strained to my limits, or deflated in spirits, my attempts to calm down revert to a philosophy of my positive psych teacher: List what makes you happy. You will feel better. I'm pretty stressed right now, and I reviewed in both of my Psych classes this week, so I didn't learn any new material. Perfect timing for a blog post like this one! I'm hoping that by making this list, I will feel marginally better by the end of the blog post. Let's see how this goes...

Reasons I Have to Smile

• My family is more than blood, they are my best friends and my entire life. I cherish their support and recognize how lucky I am to have this.
• I hold many friendships close to my heart. Few remain from early elementary school years. But those who remain are the strongest of them all.
• My experience in high school was my own definition of perfect. I never agree with people when they say they "couldn't wait to get out of high school". It's almost been a year since I spent the happiest four days of my life with 200 members of my graduating class in Disney World.
• Penn State is everything I dreamed it would be since I paraded through my 3rd grade classroom in a PSU cheerleading outfit leading "How You Feel" cheer from Remember the Titans. Football, friends, family, pride.. It can't be beat.
• My tendency to be overly sentimental allows me to value even the simplest memories in my life. I have a drawer in my closet at home labeled "Memories".  Within it, a ticket stub from my first ever live concert with my family (James Taylor) lies underneath every homemade birthday card a friend every made for me. Taking a trip down Memory Lane through the contents of this drawer is the perfect activity for a rainy day.
• I have a golden retriever puppy named Gracie. She struggles to overcome obstacles in her puppy life, like the concept of reflections in windows and mirrors. She likes giving hugs just like humans, sitting on laps despite her growing size, and rolling dozens of tennis balls under every cabinet and piece of furniture in my house.

I feel better already. Just fifteen minutes of reflection on the happiness in my life cured my Thursday night blues. Psychology may be countless theories and scientists, but it is also recognizing the importance of reflection. Taking a moment to reflect on the happiness in your life improves your perspective on your daily battles.