Mood Altering Experiences

I’m sometimes surprised at the extent to which my mood can change, sometimes dramatically, in response to external stimuli.  My outlook can plummet toward depression if I read a news article, for example, that reports a beating victim’s cries for help went unheeded by people who witnessed the beating.  Conversely, though, dull hopelessness can burst forth into euphoria with the right “input.”

Despite the lack of substantiation for many of the so-called experts referenced in Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking (which I have only read about, but have not read, so don’t assume I know what I’m talking about), I think the concept that Peale wrote about has an obvious basis if fact.  My own experiences bear it out.

This morning, I was in a rather “normal” mood, that is not happy, not sad, just “here.”  I had just returned from a moderately long walk and was passing time, waiting for my wife to awaken so I could make breakfast, by reading Facebook posts.  A post that caught my attention referred to a video, which is embedded below:

I rest my case.  Aren’t you feeling a little better?  It’s just a reminder that, despite the ubiquitous information about bad “stuff,” there’s plenty of good “stuff” out there.