Compassion Project January 2019

Abby serves on the Outreach and Communication team as the Outreach Coordinator. She is an Americorps member with Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest. She is the guest writer this month for the Compassion Project.

“I Am a Professional Laugher. . . I have been confronted with many difficulties throughout the course of my life, and my country is going through a critical period. But I laugh often, and my laughter is contagious.” – The Dalai Lama

As we enter into a new year, many of us spend time reflecting on our lives and make goals focused on improving ourselves and the world around us. One thing we might forget to reflect on is our own laughter and joy.

It can be difficult. While many things happen around you that are out of your control, finding little bits of joy and laughter in our day-to-day is key to gaining a controlled perspective of the world around us.

Maybe one day things work out serendipitously – or things just fall into place how you want them to. If we start to look for these day and times in our lives, joy and laughter is easier to come by. This also means highlighting the little joys and little laughter in our lives to friends and family.

For example, while traveling over the holiday break, I chose to highlight how I found and returned a hectic father’s ID at the airport (a little joy), instead of highlighting the many mundane details of my five hour layover. This is a small example of how we can look for the joy and laughter in our daily lives that help us amplify our own perspective and peace of mind as we move into 2019.

We all know the benefits of laughter and positivity, but in case you forgot…

Laughter is beneficial:

• Relaxes the whole body
• Boosts the immune system
• Reduces stress hormones
• Triggers the release of endorphins
• Improves the flow of blood
• Defuses the anger held within

“Laughter is good for thinking because when people laugh, it is easier for them to admit new ideas to their minds.” – Dalai Lama

Sources: http://www.thepositivepsychologypeople.com/laugh-into-compassion/

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http://www.wcaboise.org/get-help/warning-signs/

The Compassion Project: Let us be the ones who transform our world by allowing compassion to lead our action. Throughout the year, this column will feature the various ways to have compassion for others, for our specific organization, and for yourself.

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