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The Science of Happiness

Nancy Etcoff on the surprising science of happiness | Video on TED.com

When I Wish Upon a Star...

I asked the kids at my day care what they would wish for if they saw a shooting star. I then had to explain what a shooting star is since the faces in front of me were adorably blank. When I told them that sometimes the stars shoot across the sky one of the little boys shook his head and said, "No, shooting is bad." I then had to rephrase the question entirely to, "what would you wish for if you saw a flying star." More blank stares. Sheesh. This was going to be trickier than I thought. How do these kids not know about wishing on shooting stars? Come on!

I tried again. "Okay, close your eyes. Think about what you want more than anything else. Got it? Alright, open your eyes..."

Lauren - a banana (I was a little worried at this point) ... or a snowman (OK)
Artemis - a walking, talking, moving bear (now we're getting somewhere)
Kamauryon - an apple (Oh, jeeze)
Charlotte - a princess in a pink dress
Mila - a mermaid
Gianni - a shooting star (ummmmm....you know what, they're four)
Alex - black spiderman
Emma - a cat
Steven - a toy (specific)
Zachary - GI Joe Command Center
Weston - Batman (me too)
Jasmine - a unicorn
Rihanna - a princess
Sarah - to have a great dog (love it)
Mark - Indianna Jones (boy after my own heart)

And a little lady who truly understands the meaning of Christmas:
Marissa - I love my mommy and want her to be happy

Merry Christmas!

-Age

'Tis the Season

"There will never be peace in the world until there is peace in nations.
There will never be peace in nations until there is peace in communities.
There will never be peace in communities until there is peace in families.
There will never be peace in families until there is peace in individuals.
And there will never be peace in individuals until we invite the Prince of Peace to reign in our hearts.
Jesus is the Prince of Peace."

-Rick Warren

Honest Lyrics by JJ Heller

I don’t know how to follow you without losing my way,
Jesus come and take me by the hand
And I don’t know how to trust that you will do the things you say,
Spirit teach me how to understand
that your love can heal the wreckage of my soul
the beauty of your light shining in me
I don’t know when you’ll take me home to paradise with you
the day when I will finally be free
Oh, the day when you come back for me

-Age

Victim of Praise #3

Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation is an organization designed to bring joy to the lives of cancer victims, cancer survivors, and their families. The emphasis is on children and their fight to survive as cancer becomes all they know, having been diagnosed so long ago that no memory is left of what it feels like to be healthy and whole. These children’s lives are filled with hospitals, chemotherapy, radiation, and never-ending sympathy. What they need is some good, old-fashioned happiness.



This is where Armida Kersey comes in. She is the Executive Director of Candlelighters and has dedicated her personal and professional life to running this non-profit organization and giving a much needed break to these children and their families. All year long there are fundraisers and donation drives happening all over the Inland Empire, raising money and gathering supplies.



This money is not for research or for treatment but is specifically geared towards helping the family unit as a whole while the child is fighting for their lives. Imagine the stress of this situation and add on top of that the inability to afford housing near the hospital, gas to get to and from the hospital, or even Christmas gifts during the time of year when the normalcy of family and cheer is most important. Fortunately, Armida and her Foundation is here to help.



Much like the Ronald McDonald house, Candlelighters has a three-suite house offered to parents whose children have been admitted to Loma Linda University Medical Center. They give vouchers for gas and food as well. Each child, upon being admitted to the hospital, is given a gift, often a stuffed animal, to keep them company and make their stay a little brighter. Over 90% of their profits go to the families, which is a pretty amazing number considering most charitable organizations put over 20% of their earnings back into fundraising. It would seem as though the Inland Empire, while facing a difficult economic downturn, is still able to support such a worthy cause.



Candlelighters also organizes family picnics in the summer and other similar events throughout the year but their biggest and most spectacular act of giving takes the form of a large scale Christmas party each December. The Candlelighters Christmas party involves hundred of families, those who have a child currently seeking care, those that have recovered, and those who have undergone the heartbreaking experience of losing a child to cancer. All are welcome and all find hope and encouragement in one another. Each child is given a gift, even siblings, which amounts to the grand total of over 400 gifts each year! Even Santa is there to pass out the gifts and greet each child. There is food, booths, crafts, toys, and limitless fun to be had. The event is taking place this year on December 6th and, like every year since I was 12, I’ll be there making (or trying to make) balloon animals for the children. It’s a blessing to see so many smiling faces year after year.



Back to Armida. Candlelighters is a national foundation that’s been around for some time but Armida founded the Inland Empire chapter 25 years ago. She did so strictly on a volunteer basis for over 15 years, without pay. However, for the past decade, Armida has had the opportunity to fulfill a dream by making this her full-time job. She is now able to dedicate herself completely to helping families during a most trying time.



She began this organization out of personal experience. When her son was a young child he was diagnosed with cancer and she experienced first-hand the difficulties of making sure her family was taken care of while they battled with their son’s disease. She wanted to make sure that other families were given stress-free solutions to basic problems that seem so unfair when something as serious and looming as cancer is hanging over their heads. Her son is now well, in his thirties, and a thriving veterinarian.



Armida is a positive influence on her community and we can all learn from her and her drive to make people’s lives a little better, especially when tragedy strikes. It is obvious that this is a real passion for her and I imagine that she will continue to help families in the Inland Empire for years to come.

-Age

Happy Helping

A few days ago, at work, on a seemingly average day, an amazing thing happened right in front of me. To start, I’ll inform you that when children in orphanages reach the age of 18, they are no longer provided for and are released from government care. These children, and yes, they are children, are thrown out into the world damaged, unprepared and with little hope for a happy or successful future. Their Christmas’ have already been spent without family and now they would go without presents as well if it were not for a wonderful program, CHAS, which my work sponsors annually.

I work at a day care in Grand Terrace as the receptionist and directly across from my desk is a tree. Hanging from this tree are dozens of tags containing the names of a few of these young men and women as well as what they would like for Christmas. Many of the tags ask for Dora the Explorer dolls, diapers, and bottles as the recipients have become teenage mothers and fathers. They do not ask for themselves, but for their little ones. It breaks your heart to read these tags as some ask for clothes, shoes, and gift certificates for food. And even in these tough times, the parents at our day care choose a tag and do what they can to help the life of a child who has seen his or her fair share of tough times.

But the moment that most stuck out to me involved a father who brought in his two kids to each pick a tag from the tree. The father told me that they had bought only one Christmas gift for the entire family to share and, with the money they saved, they were going to give to those less fortunate. He told me that Christmas is about giving, not receiving, and he wants his children to understand that important fact. He knows he is blessed and his children want for nothing and he feels that if they understand that not every child in the world has that luxury, they will grow up to be generous, loving people who live simply and give freely.

And while he is telling me all this his children, his young children, are not complaining but deciding which tag to choose, which child they want to buy a Christmas present for, whose holiday they want to make brighter. They were happy to give and they were content, knowing their dad will take care of them and they don’t have to worry about a thing.

Many in this country have lost touch of the importance of social responsibility. And it’s not necessarily because we don’t want to help those around us but we simply don’t know how. My church’s Thanksgiving food-drive is all booked up. They literally have too much food, too much money, and too many volunteers. That’s a wonderful thing but what it shows me is that we tend to give during a certain time of year and we lack a balance. We are all aware that there will be a Thanksgiving food-drive and that the local grocery stores collect toys for children during Christmas so we all give like crazy because, finally, we have an opportunity to help. But what about the rest of the time? We need to be more proactive about how we help and look for ways to give and to volunteer throughout the year.

There are endless websites that show us how we can help. Here’s a sampling:
· http://www.freethechildren.com/
· http://www.handsoninlandempire.org/
· http://www.charityguide.org/

Many of these websites are geared toward getting children involved in charitable work. Showing the next generation how to help and how important it is to give to those who too often go without. Opening our eyes to a need and realizing that we are capable of providing a much needed service within our community and beyond will benefit not only those we help but ourselves as well. When we see that we can make a difference, our souls grow and we are better than we were before. Soon, lending a helping hand will be like second nature. Happy helping.

-Age