“Little things console us because little things afflict us.” Blaise Pascal

A message from Terry: Occasionally, life serves up an earth-shaking event to delight us: a birth, a wedding, a big lottery win, a vacation to an exotic locale. More often, however, the flavor of our days is improved by much smaller phenomena: a smile, a favor, a rainbow, or that fabulous aroma that spills out into the street when you open the door of a bakery.

Isn’t it wonderful that there are no calories in what we smell? No matter how deep a breath you take of that just-out-of-the-oven scent of a loaf of bread or a tray of cookies, you won’t gain an ounce.  And no matter how many smiles you distribute to friends, family, co-workers and total strangers, you’ll never run out.  Smiles are the ultimate renewable resource.

Sometimes, even on the drabbest day, all it takes is an unexpected splash of color – perhaps a cardinal gleaming scarlet as it flies across a snowy yard, or the garishly exuberant yellow of a school bus driving down a winter-grey street – to lift our spirits. Are you being stalked by the cold-weather blues? Treat yourself to the soft warmth of a new scarf, or a fuzzy cover for your car’s icy steering wheel. And if the Grinch has snuck into your offices, why not fend him off by writing some cheerful and encouraging messages on Post-It notes that you can tuck into nooks and crannies where members of your team will come across them unexpectedly?

Sometimes, the whole atmosphere can be changed for the better by one brave soul who’s willing to trust that Spring will eventually return.

What can you do to raise people’s spirits, despite the winter weather?