Always look on the bright side of life...
OPTIMISM can help people live longer, a recent survey found.
People who look on the bright side of life have better mental and physical health, manage stress better and have lower rates of depression.
This positive outlook can lower the risk of morbidity and mortality and those with a “glass half full” attitude are more likely to make it to the age of 90.
I like to think I’ve always been an optimist but, just in case I could find more tips for extending longevity, I consulted Professor Google.
I eased past the wellness sites that encouraged me to identify my inner monologue and keep a gratitude journal and was less than convinced by the advice to: “Embrace your emotions.” What if your emotions wanted to grab the till money and run?
But I got the drift. Being positive can make life better. Having a smile on your face apparently helps, although care should be taken to achieve the correct balance between smirk, leer and mad. Grinning like Jack Nicholson in The Shining might not be conducive to trust and friendship.
Appreciating the good things in life seems a reasonable philosophy, as does being a good listener and forgiving, being kind and adopting a healthy lifestyle.
Laughing a lot is also recommended, which takes us back to the pitfalls of smiling. Try to avoid the cackle of Macbeth’s witches or that distinctive mating cry of the seagull that is the Jimmy Carr guffaw. Morecambe and Wise laughter would be far better.
In my early days of optimism, I once tried being a comedian. Laugh? I thought they’d never start. Still, it hasn’t stopped me. I still tell jokes with a deadpan delivery, which is quite appropriate, as they are usually received with a deadpan response. It’s like Jack Dee telling gags to himself in the mirror. At closing time publicans have been known to employ me as a stand-up to empty their pubs.
“Time, gentlemen, please. Let’s have your glasses. And here is Diddy Denis, that merry man of mirth.”
First joke and they’re leaving.
A prime example of the benefits of leading an optimistic and good humoured life is Paddington Bear. While the average lifespan of his kin in Peru is 25, he is an effervescent 64 and achieved the ultimate accolade by being invited to tea by the Queen. My ambitions have never reached so high. These days I prefer a Last of the Summer Wine analogy. My aim is to always be Compo rather than Foggy.
It seems fitting to acknowledge Eric Idle who wrote the ultimate anthem to optimism, Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life, which he sang while awaiting his execution in Life Of Brian. Well, it worked. His career never looked back after that success and the song is one of the most popular at funerals. I might even have that myself. Hopefully many years from now.
Appreciating the good things in life seems like a reasonable philosophy
Denis Kilcommons