This is the first blog in our newest series as we count down to the darkest day of the year: the winter solstice. Over the next few weeks, we will be featuring some of the brightest lights of hope in our community -- the true shooting stars in our field.
As we welcome the season of giving and light, I write my annual gratitude list, which includes a reflection on the opportunity to engage in such meaningful work. When I'm called to write, it's often in the middle of a public crisis. "How can I stay so positive? How do I navigate out of the darkness?" people often ask. The answer is something at the very core of Flawless's mission: gratitude. I live my life from a place of gratitude -- it is a spiritual practice for me. Everything I do is fueled by gratitude, by the privilege I have of seeing a glimpse of our country's mental health crisis coming to an end. I do this work everyday for many hours, and everyday I can see the bright light in the shadows.
Gratitude is good for us, too. Recent studies show how gratitude can lead to better immune systems, healthier hearts, better sleeping patterns, more meaningful relationships, and greater overall well-being in humans. Other research has shown that people who exhibit gratitude on a regular basis tend to score higher on happiness scales. A simple thank you, it seems, can go a long way.
I am incredibly thankful for the work that I do, and for the brightest moments I've had, the moments that have driven out the darkness, the moments where radical hope and change are palpable. As the winter solstice approaches, and with it come the darkest days of the year, it's time for us to celebrate the light and express our thanks.
Today, I reflect on the moments this year that inspired me to revel in the light and that have renewed my hope for progress. The list below contains every puzzle piece that will help end our mental health crisis. Here is what thank you looks like to me this Thanksgiving:
- The Emotion Revolution Summit, co-hosted by Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. At this event, which looked at changing the culture of schools by focusing on Social and Emotional Learning, we were inspired by listening to Lady Gaga speak about her own challenges with anxiety and depression. The power of researchers, policy makers, educators, philanthropists, and high school students coming together to create "kinder and braver schools" is a true game changer for prevention.
As we come together with friends and family and reflect on our own "gratitude lists," let's light a candle to signify bright hope, the shining light we see in the shadow. The days may be getting shorter and darker, but our light of hope for whole health has never been brighter!