There is a bit of insanity in dancing
that does everybody a great deal of good.
~ Edwin Denby
Resources to bite into
1. Is Dancing in our Genes?The current Brain Aerobics Weekly, celebrates New Zealand and Maori culture on the excuse that December 13th marks the first sighting (in 1642) by Europeans of the beautiful islands. In recent years, the Maori dance of intimidation called the haka, which involves stomping, chanting, chest beating and sticking one’s tongue out, has been taken up by New Zealand’s national rugby team, the All Blacks, and a few American football teams. But the Maoris – like all cultures throughout history – have a variety of traditional dances, so scientists have begun to study whether dancing is in our genes. Read more at http://www.livescience.com/health/060310_born_dance.html and http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2006/02/22/1576009.htm).
2. Is Giving in our Genes?
The current discussion pages of Brain Aerobics Weekly also asks whether giving is in our genes, based on an article written by Nicholas Wade for The New York Times titled, “We May Be Born With an Urge to Help” (December 1, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/01/science/01human.html?_r=1&th&emc=th). However, the main focus of the BAW pages is a book by Cami Walker called 29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life. (To order, click here.) Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis three years ago in her early 30s, Ms. Walker at first railed against her fate until coming across a note she had made (and ignored) from a woman who provided her with periodic counsel. The note said to give something away for 29 days. When she began taking the advice – in small ways such as making a supportive call to another woman with MS, not in physical gifts – she found she began looking forward to each day, and both her attitude and her health improved. The idea is not new – when we focus on helping others instead of our own troubles, we almost always feel better – but the 29-day cycle and the conscious recording of what one has done, that is, basking in the good feelings generated by one’s good deed, offer a new twist.
3. December 12 Is Poinsettia Day
Poinsettias were called "Cuetlaxochitl” by the Aztecs, who used the “star flower” as a dye and the sap to reduce fevers. Mexicans celebrate the date in honor of the Virgin Mary and call it La Flor de la Nochebuena or Flower of the Holy Night. Americans chose the date because it was the day the man who gave the flower its current name Joel Roberts Poinsett, died. He was the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico in the 1820s. But the day is meant to honor Paul Ecke Jr., who is considered the father of the poinsettia industry. Poinsettias are now the best selling potted plants in the U.S. and Canada.
Tips/ideas/insights to savor
The current Brain Aerobics Weekly also features a matching quiz of holiday quotations that provides an interesting pastime or a way to choose partners in a group. Give all participants half a quotation and see if they can find their other half. Here are some of the samples we used:
• Nothing's as mean as giving a little child . . . something useful for Christmas. ~ Kim Hubbard
• A holiday shopper’s complaint is . . . one of long-standing. ~ Anon
• Santa is very jolly because . . . he knows where all the bad girls live. ~ Dennis Miller
• Christmas is a time when everybody wants his past forgotten and . . . his present remembered." ~ Phyllis Diller
• Santa Claus has the right idea. . . . Visit people once a year. ~ Victor Borge
• The best Yuletide decoration is . . . being wreathed in smiles. ~ Anon
• A goose never . . . voted for an early Christmas. ~ Irish Saying
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