Father’s Day is Sunday September 3rd so try and spend some time with your dad (online or in person). Ok so I know all dads aren’t great all of the time, and sometimes they can be really annoying and specialise in lecturing you about what you are going to do with your life.
But hey (good) fathers care, they care a lot. Treasure them, sit with them and listen (sometimes) to them.
I’m telling you fathers love Father’s Day, if they say they want a specific present on Father’s day, get it for them, don’t shrug it off. Take them out for a coffee, a walk or a bike ride, or whatever makes them happy, just you and your dad. Seriously they will love you for it.
Today (August 19th) is World Photography Day. Photographers around the world celebrate this day. Today is the day we pay homage to how photography has shaped our lives. Photography has become an integral part of human culture and communication. Nearly everyone in the world has a cell phone and we can all take photos digitally so it can be argued that photography is now more accessible to everyone.
We have a great range of photography books for you to borrow or browse here at Ara and this range includes eBooks, here are a couple of eBooks on photography:
Positive thinking is simply believing that good things can happen. It means:
being solution focused when bad things happen
believing that you can cope with setbacks and failure
avoiding a doom and gloom mindset.
Is positive thinking a positive?
Positive thinking does bring many benefits, including:
Making you more appreciative and happier
Helping to keep you physically and mentally healthy. Mayo Clinic (2022) talks about the many likely health benefits of having a positive mindset:
Increased lifespan
Lower rates of depression
Lower levels of distress and pain
Greater resistance to illnesses
Better psychological and physical well-being
Better cardiovascular health and reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease and stroke
Reduced risk of death from cancer
Reduced risk of death from respiratory conditions
Reduced risk of death from infections
Better coping skills during hardships and times of stress.
Positive thinking makes you a positive influence on those around you.
Being positive brings you hope for the present and the future.
Positive thoughts drive positive talk, positive actions and possible positive outcomes.
Are you a positive thinker?
To find out, listen to your self-talk. Are most of your thoughts positive or negative? If most of your thoughts are positive, you’re a positive thinker!
What to do if your self-talk tends to be negative?
No worries! You can start to think positively. You can begin to change your perspective.
Start to turn negative thoughts like:
“I can’t cope with this!” into something like
“This is challenging, but I can manage. I’ll get help if needed”.
Over time, you’ll develop the habit of thinking more positively, and you’ll reap its many rewards.
Takeaway
Life has its unpleasant moments, but how we respond is our choice to make. I hope I’ve convinced you (and myself) to make a positive choice!
At 3.20am this morning my bed began to shake. An earthquake I pondered. No, it was Evie my rescue cat pretending to be Spiderman on the bottom of my mattress. She gets locked in at night and routinely punishes me for this restriction on her freedom. Despite broken sleep, I do absolutely adore her. As I was bending down at the SPCA to look at cats she hooked my hair with her claws and pulled me up to eye level. She picked me. I was deemed worthy of her attention, and I have been making sure I am up to her standards ever since.
Evie!
The 8th of August is International Cat Appreciation Day (though if you own a cat, you are under obligation to appreciate them every day without exception!) and I am happy to encourage the love and support for these glorious creatures. Not everyone is taken with the cat’s regal and mysterious ways or their hunting abilities (put a bell on it!) but where would we be without silly cat videos to get us through the working day?
When I come home from a bad day at work, I pick Evie up and bury my head in her soft fur and breathe in her warmth and relax to the sound of her purring. She gives me the side eye and relaxes as this form of worship is only her due. We need cats with their contradictions of grace and goofiness, their athleticism and sloth. Let us appreciate that their behaviour is something we can all learn from – stay curious and elegant and if it all gets too much find somewhere warm and nap.
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