We are not robots, although sometimes the dullness of life can make us feel that way.  At various stages of our lives, we are overwhelmed by the boredom of daily living.  I guess that is what winter vacations are for. 

There are many diversions built into our lives to relieve boredom.  There is the latest movie or album to entertain us for a brief period, there are events and activities of all kinds to break up our days, too many to mention.  Each one offers an invitation to participate. 

Back to the scribbled note, it names a major reason for living is to have a little joy.  What dismal persons are those who have no joy. 

Joy might be discussed as internal happiness.  We all know people who run the range from being nonstop happy (sometimes very annoying) to nonstop unhappy.  We should focus on the middle ground. 

Let’s look at it from the backside. We know a lot of things that will make us unhappy (supply your own list here) and by eliminating them from our lives (where possible) our happiness index will naturally rise. 

If our lives are weighed down by responsibilities, see them through and don’t renew. 

Once we have a written list of what makes us unhappy, we can also make a list of what would make us happy, and try them out, one at a time.  Then we know if it stays or goes from the list.  We should be creative and not hold back.  We may not ever have the opportunity to “run away with the circus,” but on that list will be a lot of dreams that could become reality if we follow that path.  

Now that’s a reason for living.

We should be careful what we wish for.  Winning the lottery, as an example, should make us happy, but many people who have won wind up unhappy, plagued by relentless appeals for money. 

A major item that makes people unhappy is lack of control over their life activities.  The punishment of imprisonment is more than the lack of freedom; it is the lack of control over the person’s life.  They can make almost no choices of their own. 

Many of us are caught in a web of our own making.  As we mature, obligations seem magically to accumulate and we are driven by them.  We feel we are losing control over large portions of our lives.  We are not happy, and can’t pin the reason why. 

Feeling helpless and loss of control makes us unhappy. 

We must be careful to combat those feelings early.  Left to themselves they will get worse and may cause depression.  People give up living when they lose all control. 

We should go back to that list or make a new list of things that obligate us and things that draw us to them.  Rate them on some scale, positive for the things we want to do and would make us happy, negative for the things that make us unhappy. 

Keep in mind that an obligation like college tuition for a child will result in the happiness of seeing that person graduate with a career.   

If there are relationship issues, there are thousands of articles and mentors that can help us deal with and improve them.

Make it a hobby to work on the list, taking steps forward to raise the negative ratings and gain free time to pursue the positive items that will bring us joy. 

Now that’s another reason for living. 

Finally, feeling useless makes us unhappy. 

We are social animals, and it is built into our genes to help others.  We can volunteer for something that helps another person.  It is one thing to send money, but physically working to help others face to face makes us feel useful and gives us deeper satisfaction. 

Can we make someone’s life better by helping them in some way that would only get done with our efforts?  Try it.  You’ll feel great.  

And that’s another reason for living. 

Don’t give up living and don’t “run away with the circus.” 

Be useful; be happy. 

Live a vital life.

With winter upon us, many of us are feeling cranky and cold in more than temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a pattern of symptoms or syndrome characterized by depression during winter months when there are shorter days and too little sunlight, causing our body’s circadian rhythms (time clock) to lose synchronization with our body’s operational routine. 

The symptoms of SAD besides the fatigue and depression mentioned previously are loss of appetite or increased cravings for sweets, candies and carbohydrates,  as well as decreased activity promoting increase in weight. 

Studies concentrating on daily weather rather than seasonal climate have drawn conclusions that length of daylight, amount of sunlight and temperature have little effect on our moods. 

But we are more sensitive to climate than to weather.

One conclusion for climate-caused depression is that the small effect daily weather has on our moods is cumulative, building until it becomes a prime emotional state.  Dark gray days promote the secretion of melatonin (root: black tonic) that establishes sleep cycles; sunlight makes Vitamin D in the body which promotes wakefulness and lifts mood by boosting levels of serotonin (root: serum tonic). 

Other studies have shown a connection between pleasant spring weather and a more positive mood.  They conclude that the lengthening days bring our body’s operational routine back to our ‘normal’ settings.

So, what is a good way to lift that gray-sky melancholy?   Simple.  Get some sun.

Whenever the sun actually breaks through the winter clouds and shines brightly, get outside and let the sun hit your skin for a while.  It doesn’t have to be long if it is cold, but you will be surprised at how your mood lifts.

An alternative to natural sunlight, if the sun doesn’t break through, is an artificial sunlight lamp.  And for those of us wealthy enough, a midwinter vacation in a sunny location will boost your outlook.  If you can’t escape to a sunny isle, do activities that make you feel good. 

We often consider ourselves ‘evolved’ beings, no longer connected to our cave-dwelling ancestors.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Our ancestors developed a highly tuned body that survived all the disasters that befell them.  They owned the perfected body, which is why they survived to have descendants.

Our ancestors did not venture out into the cold to freeze, but depression evolved to create a strong craving for getting out into the sunlight of spring.  They stockpiled food and firewood and spent their days protected from the elements, and sleeping to pass the time.  Those evolved urgings live in us today.

Don’t be a cold crank.  Change your outlook.  Warm up in the sunlight.