One Secret to Happiness: Gratitude

Gratitude In the 1600s, French author François VI, Duc de La Rochefoucauld wrote, “The gratitude of most men is merely a secret desire to receive greater benefits.” (Reflections, or, Sentences and Moral Maxims 298 (1678)). While the maxim implies some type of dishonesty, La Rochefoucauld might have been surprised to learn that one’s gratitude reaps some more unexpected benefits.

In the video “The Science of Happiness – An Experiment in Gratitude,” SoulPancake presents the result of a study finding that one way to increase happiness is to show gratitude. The video explains how expressing gratitude benefits us, and then it shows a real life experiment that is both interesting and touching. Check it out. You can thank me later.

YouTube also has a behind-the-scenes look at this video as well as a sequel “The Science of Happiness – A Study of Cute Aggression.” In the meantime, like Alanis Morrisette at this 1999 performance in Rome, NY, remember to show your gratitude and say “Thank U.” It is good for you.

Alanis Morrisette reportedly wrote “Thank U” out of a personal experience after visiting India. She began looking inside herself in a different way, finding compassion for her self and gratitude toward others. Although the song touches on ideas of “terror” and “frailty,” it is ultimately a hopeful song about learning and thankfulness. And as found in the new study, a nice reminder to show gratitude as a small step toward increasing happiness.

Thanks to Carolyn for pointing me to the SoulPancake video.

Photo via public domain.

Do you think expressing gratitude makes you happier? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    The Big Chill Released in 1983

    In 1983, Columbia Pictures released “The Big Chill,” a film featuring an ensemble of great young actors (including a rising star cut out of the movie) as characters looking back on the 1960s with nostalgia, loss, and wonderful music.

    Big Chill Soundtrack

    On September 28, 1983, Columbia Pictures released The Big Chill. The film, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, featured baby boomer college friends reuniting around fifteen years after school for the funeral of a friend who committed suicide. The film perfectly encompassed the baby-boomer anxiety about selling out in life and a loss of innocence.

    And of course, there was the humor.  And the movie featured the great soundtrack with such performers as Marvin Gaye, Creedance Clearwater Revival, and Aretha Franklin.

    The move taught me an important lesson that had little to do with the lost idealism or the friendship of the characters. I learned how great it can be not to know anything about a movie before you see it.

    When I was in college, I went to a shopping mall with friends and we decided to see a movie. As we debated what to see, none of us had yet seen any advertisements for The Big Chill. I only knew that my sister had seen it and liked it, but I had no idea about the story or the actors.

    Well, we decided to see The Big Chill based on my sister’s vague recommendation. By the time the movie got to the scene with the Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” I was hooked.

    For the time period, with MTV only about two years old, the movie seemed like something new and refreshing, using rock music to explore the 1980s nostalgia for the 1960s. I do not know if I would have loved the movie so much had I known what to expect. So I learned the best way to see a movie is without expectations. Now, before I see a movie I try to learn only as much as I need in order to decide whether or not I want to see it.

    Thus, in case you have not seen the The Big Chill, I will not say much more about the plot. Many have fond memories of the movie, which had a great ensemble cast of Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly, and JoBeth Williams.

    Much later, we would read that the dead friend Alex, who we never see in the film, was originally played by a young Kevin Costner.  In this reunion video, you may hear more about a deleted flashback scene featuring Costner.

    Critics are somewhat divided on the film.  I understand how looking back at the movie through today’s lens, one may see too many clichés.

    But for the time, seeing the movie through my own innocence, it helped connect me a tiny bit to thinking about how I might one day look back on my own life. And today, I find myself older than the characters in the film looking back nostalgically at where I was when I first saw The Big Chill during my own college years.

    What is your favorite scene in The Big Chill? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Montage of Movie Final Scenes

    In this short video, The Last Thing You See: A Final Shot Montage, Zach Prewitt has created a montage of final movie scenes. The video connects final shots by theme, creating a seamless video of wonderful moments in what Prewitt calls, “A meditation on the beautiful, cathartic, and transcendent power of the final shot.”

    The collection is divided into eight parts: Awakening/Creation, The Natural World, Youth, Love, The Journey, Triumph, Celebration, and Transcendence. It opens with scenes from The Tree of Life (2011) and Vanilla Sky (2001) and ends with scenes from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and The Last Temptation of Christ (1988). Check it out.

    The music for the montage is “Gathering Storm” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor. For a complete list of movies, check out YouTube.

    What is your favorite final scene? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Will Forte Takes a Serious Turn in “Nebraska”

    Nebraska Will Forte Will Forte used to make me laugh on Saturday Night Live. With a certain goofy look or inflection in his voice, he can crack me up. Even though I grew tired of the repeated “MacGruber” segments on the TV show, when I found myself watching the movie MacGruber he made with Kristin Wiig in 2010, I could not help laughing at some of the ridiculous scenes.

    Now, I find myself looking forward to a Will Forte performance in a movie that is not a comedy. Nebraska, which will be released in the U.S. on November 22, 2013, features Forte and Bruce Dern in a film directed by Alexander Payne (The Descendants (2011), Sideways (2004), About Schmidt (2002)).

    In the movie, Dern portrays a character with mental issues who believes he has won a million dollars. Forte plays Dern’s son, traveling with the older man on a trip to get the imaginary cash. The film has received Oscar buzz since it debuted at Cannes. To get an idea of Forte’s dramatic turn, check out this scene from the black and white film.

    On the other hand, the newly released trailer for Nebraska reveals a quirkiness and humor that appear in Payne’s other films. It looks like Forte will fit in just fine with the legendary Bruce Dern.

    What is your favorite Will Forte character? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Volkswagen Salutes A-ha’s Famous “Take on Me” Video

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    If you were around in 1985, you could not miss the Norwegian band A-ha and their video for “Take on Me.” The cutting edge animation by Michael Patterson and Candace Reckinge in the video directed by Steve Barron is still amazing even after decades of technological advances. The video won six MTV Awards.

    More recently, Volkswagen incorporated the song and the animation style in a new commercial “Feeling Carefree.” The animated story features a Volkswagen Passat winning a race and then it goes into its own twist ending of sorts. David Shane directed the new ad. Check it out.



    What is your favorite animated ad? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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