Snippets of joy and soul-food
With so much to bring us down, it’s time to see a few happy words from songs and musicals that we have grown to love. If you have been feeling the need for a little pick me up, here are some snippets of joy and soul food.
They are the best advice and the truest heart connection.

Louis Armstrong didn’t have a perfect life, but he cheered us all up with this lovely old song.

‘I see trees of green and red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world….’

The colours of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They’re really saying ‘I love you…..’
‘What a Wonderful World’

Joy and sorrow
Julie Andrews in ‘Sound of Music’ told us to remember our favourite things when things aren’t that great, but how often do you do that? The reason we don’t is because we get overwhelmed and put all our focus on getting through each day. Balance the heavy dark clouds with a sprinkle of raindrops. In other words, go for a walk and look for a big beautiful rose to bury your nose into.

‘Raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woollen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with string
These are a few of my favourite things…

When the dog bites, when the bee stings
When I’m feeling sad,
I simply remember my favourite things
And then I don’t feel so sad…’

And then, bless her, she reminds us that while we have not always been perfect, we are still ok. We all think less of ourselves than we should.

‘Perhaps I had a wicked childhood
Perhaps I had a miserable youth,
But somewhere in my wicked miserable past
There must have been a moment of truth
…….I must have done something good…..’

You have done something good. You are good, and you are not being punished when life is hard. You are being pulled up into a different level of existence, one which has taught you values, truth and resilience. Don’t let cynicism, self-pity or just plain wretchedness blind you to the value of your journey. This is the dark cloud that blocks out the sunlight of wisdom.

The negative self-talk
In 1949 Rogers and Hammerstein had a clue about the negative voice we all struggle with inside our heads to write the ‘Happy Talk’ song from ‘South Pacific’

‘Happy talk, keep talkin’ happy talk
Talk about thing you like to do
You got to have a dream….
If you don’t have a dream…
How you gonna have a dream come true?

That’s right, how are you going to keep going with the chemo or looking after your elderly mother if you don’t have a dream? A dream that things are going to get better.

Money worries
Poor Tevye from ‘Fiddler on the Roof.’ What a golden heart he had, what dreams he had for his family to be happy and together. Life put many obstacles in his way, but his faith and optimism stayed strong.

‘If I were a rich man
Ya ha deedle deedle, bubba bubba deedle deedle dum
All day long I’d biddy biddy bum
If I were a wealthy man
I wouldn’t’ have to work hard
Ya ha deedle deedle, bubba bubba deedle deedle dum
If I were a biddy biddy rich
Yidle-diddle-didle-didle man!’

You have to admit that if you are familiar with this song, you really wanted to get up and shake your body with Tevye just then! And just like him, don’t we all think that a bit more money would fix a lot of issues! It’s ok to dream.

Head for the hills
When it all just gets unbearable, head for the hills, literally. The beautiful outdoors beckon with a healing remedy of their own. Breathe in the eucalyptus trees, turn your face to a vast blue sky and open your arms wide to the natural world.

‘I go to the hills when my heart is lonely,
I know I will hear, what I’ve heard before
My heart will be blessed, with the sound of music
And I’ll sing once more.’

Every soul on this earth has now or at some point in their life a hurdle almost too unbearable to climb. But have happy talk in your mind, appreciate the small gifts around us and look for the brown paper packages tied up with string.
Keep a secret dream that brings joy to your heart and let it come true one day, by looking forward to it as if it were already true. There is real power in our thoughts and words to create change or be more accepting of our situation.

Erica Fotineas