Go from Gloom to Bloom for the Holidays

Life can be hectic any time of year. And things seem to get extra busy over the holidays. Getting together with loved ones and friends is a nice reminder of how much we have to be grateful for, but sometimes the extra planning, baking, shopping and other activities associated with this time of year can be overwhelming for kids and grown ups.

The Lisa.fm Christmas Channel, a holiday-themed talk radio show at www.lisa.fm, offers a variety of tips, interviews and features that can help make the holidays more enjoyable for you and the entire family. Whether it’s how to avoid overindulging at holiday parties, to planning fun activities, and really being in the NOW enough to enjoy this special time with loved ones, the Lisa.fm Christmas Channel offers entertaining solutions.

If you have children (or you are just trying to be a better parent to yourself), tune-in to ‘Gloom to Bloom,’ segment at Lisa.fm The mother/daughter team of Michiko and Grace Rolek offer simple tips for how to turnaround a stressful or tense situation, through a simple attitude adjustment, how to go from ‘Gloom to Bloom.’

Michiko is the great granddaughter of the first Zen Master to come to America, and her daughter, Grace, is an actress and voice over artist who has parts in Disney and other cartoons, including the role of the ‘shy bunny’ in the Kung Fu Panda short film, “The Secrets of the Furious Five.” The 20 minute story is included as a bonus disk in the Kung Fu Panda movie DVD.

In order to assist Grace with the stress of auditioning for parts, and working in the entertainment industry, Michiko has created a series of mindfulness techniques she calls “Zen Mommy and Me.”

Go from Gloom to Bloom

One way to turn around a stressful situation is to go from ‘Gloom to Bloom,’ using calm, deep breathing as an attitude adjustment. Michiko calls Gloom to Bloom “a mood magic tool… where we use mindfulness to non-judgmentally observe ourselves getting mad or sad, and choose to mentally shift from gloomy frustration to blooming fascination with the potential of turning an obstacle or any difficulty into a learning opportunity.”

The deep breathing allows you to center and readjust your attitude in any stressful situation. Of course, it may take a few breaths to get beyond a truly stressful situation.

“Take as many breaths as needed, breathe a little deeper and slower, you will start to calm down and be centered, and see things differently,” suggests Michiko.

“Just like Aladdin and Jasmine on their magic carpet ride, they see everything in a new way because they’re at a higher viewpoint,” adds eleven-year old Grace.

Go through the Gloom to Bloom exercise with Michiko and Grace, and tune-in to other Zen Mommy & Me segments, click on the “Lisa.fm Christmas Channel” button at http://www.lisa.fm.

Or, here’s the direct link to the podcast: http://lisafm.podomatic.com/entry/2008-12-02T10_47_38-08_00