“If you want a recipe for unhappiness, spend your time accumulating a lot of money and let your health and relationships deteriorate,” said Atomic Habits author James Clear.
It’s a fitting reminder as we head toward Valentine’s Day because our health and relationships should always take the front seat in our lives. Though the history of Saint Valentine is very unsettling, and he is far from being the patron of love.
It wasn’t until the author Geoffrey Chaucer (The Canterbury Tales) spoke of mating birds during the month of February that this season took on happier notes. Soon, European nobility began sending love messages during bird-mating season.
Much later, industrialization and mass-produced illustrated cards made it easier to show someone you cared. Then Cadbury, Hershey’s, and other chocolate manufacturers made sweets in anticipation of Valentine’s Day. The rest is history.
(By the way, this is not a very healthy way to say, “I love you.” Maybe plain strawberries, pomegranates, and beets could have been the start of a healthy Valentine’s Day revolution? Yes, I did say beets.)
Today, I’m encouraging you to take Valentine’s Day one step further into the future—perhaps another historic iteration if you will…
Make it a day to share your gratitude. After all, isn’t it a reason to let someone know how much you appreciate them? (And to say it directly to them, even in person!)
Gratitude isn’t a nicety; it’s a necessity. There are numerous mental and physical benefits of gratitude—especially journaling about it.
There are quite a few studies that support journaling, citing that writing about your reflections is essential for promoting your personal well-being, developing self-discovery, reducing depression, boosting immune function, improving memory function and, yes, cultivating gratitude. With all these benefits, it’s hard to believe that more people don’t make it a regular practice.
This Valentine’s Day, ask your loved one for a gratitude journal or give one! Can’t wait that long? Get started today with my free Daily Loves journal. You’ll be keeping Clear’s recipe for unhappiness at bay and ensuring that you’ve got your eye on the prize: your good health and loved ones in your life.
Be positively altered,
Dr. Cindy
P.S. Join me for a conversation about my journey through adversity on the Adjusted Reality podcast! I talk about surprising revelations I experienced while writing my new book, Positively Altered: Finding Happiness at the Bottom of a Chemo Bag.