Chappy's Chat
So much has changed in the world since our last newsletter only two weeks ago. I know that with so many forced closures and the need for social distancing, grief and loss have become a reality for many of us. While there are no quick fixes, please look for ways to grow, to support, and to be kind to others in our community through this difficult time and potentially long recovery period.
As I walked around school today, visiting classrooms and checking that everyone was calm, I came across three classrooms busy working on gratitude journals. What a lovely thing to do, particularly in a time of uncertainty, stress and even loss.
The Oxford Dictionary defines gratitude as, “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness”. Harvard Medical School have published an article, “Giving thanks can make you happier”, saying that gratitude is “strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness”. Gratitude improves our health and well-being by helping people work through adversity, have increased positive emotions, impacting relationships and experiences. Gratitude can be expressed for the:
- Past – thankful for past experiences, lessons, friendships, blessings
- Present – appreciation for the things and people in your life
- Future – hope for the future with an optimistic mindset
During this current crisis, it is so important to develop good practices that will help us through this time, to maintain/improve our mental health, and positively impact those around us. In implementing this practice in your life, you could write in a journal (as some of our students have been doing), verbalise your thanks to people around you, write a card or email to someone outside the family, or even have a time of sharing with the family at dinnertime. What could you start doing today to express your gratitude?
“Piglet noticed that even though he had a very small heart, it could hold a rather large amount of gratitude” – A.A.Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh
Blessings,
Jennifer Bennett