The Benefits of Being Thankful

Discover how a thankful spirit benefits you and others
感恩的好處 - 來看看心懷感恩如何益己益人.

With bad news all around us, it's sometimes easy to feel discouraged. Yet according to experts, it's much healthier to maintain a positive attitude.

But how can you do it? Stop and think of all the things you are thankful for. You may be surprised how many things you can think of. Being aware of your many blessings makes it easier to have a thankful attitude.

Why is that important, thought?

The  Benefits:
* Grateful people are kinder and more likely to feel loved. Thankful people have higher levels of optimism.

* People who practice gratitude can increase their happiness by 25 percent!

* Grateful people have lower level of depression and stress. 

* People who are grateful place a low value on material goods. Therefore they don't waste their time and energy desiring what others have.

* Thankful people express greater satisfaction in life and more hope for the future.

* The biggest benefit, though, is that a thankful attitude is contagious. You might be surprised by how good it makes you and those around you feel!

(pessimism can harm our physical health.)

Grammar Gym:
"Being aware of your many blessing makes it easier to have a thankful attitude." 
* Being (adjective) makes it (adjective) to (do something).
Being sensitive to the needs of other people makes it easier to not be so selfish.
Being quick to listen and slow to speak makes it easier for you to understand what others are trying to communicate.
Being the first to apologize makes it harder for others to stay mad at you.


Vocabulary Tips:
impression -印象。
*Making a good first impression is very important when interviewing.
*I don't have much of an impression of Sandy's brother.
impress (v) - 印象
*I was very impressed by his politeness. 好感，好印象。
creativity - 创力，创作力。create-创造。creative -有创意。
*The process of brainstorming can spur the creativity within us.
amazed -使惊奇，使诧异。
*I was amazed by the director's creativity.
discourage - 使气馁，沮丧的。
*Bobby wan't discouraged when his colleagues didn't accept his suggestions.
encouraged -激励，鼓舞。
*Isabelle felt so encouraged when her first novel was published.
optimism -乐观。
*Maggie's optimism make she very popular with her peers.
pessimism -悲观。
*There's a universal pessimism about the future of the company.
depression -忧郁，沮丧。
*Daniel slid into depression after being laid off.
*Allen suffers from depression and is on medication now.
depress (v) -抑郁，压抑。使沮丧。
*Cold, snowy weather always depresses me.
satisfaction (n) -满足。
*Customers' satisfaction is our company's ultimate goal.
satisfy (v) -满足。
*The tabloid satisfies people's curiosity. 八卦报道满足人们的好奇心。
leave something out - 排除。。。

Language Tips:
stinking thinking -负面的思考，对他人只会批判。





Notes taking of studioclassroom

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

梅西百貨感恩節大遊行America starts Thanksgiving in style 美國民眾別具風格地慶祝感恩節by Ryan Batdorf

Today in America, most families are gathering together for a feast. In addition, they will play games or watch football together. However, for many, the holiday doesn't seem complete without viewing this large parade in New York City.

How it started
Back in 1924, many of Macy's Department Store employees were European immigrants. Wanting to celebrate American holidays as they did in Europe, they staged a parade. The parade consisted of three floats, four bands and many animals from the Central Park Zoo. Man Macy's employees dressed up and marched in this parade too. And Santa Claus appeared at the parade's end-still a tradition 86 years later!

Today's celebration
Some aspects of this parade have changed over the years. Floats, marching bands and Santa are still a part of the parade, but animals aren't. Those watching today will see numerous giant balloons shaped like animals or famous cartoon characters. Ten thousand people now take part in this parade. More than 3.5 million watch from the sidewalks, and the expected TV audience is 50 million. Many Americans just can't imagine a Thanksgiving without the magical Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Grammar on the go:
Many Americans just can't imagine a Thanksgiving without the magical Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Subject + can't imagine a + something + without + something.
Many Chinese just can't imagine a Lunar New Year celebration without firecrackers.
Jeff is always online, so he can't imagine living in a place with no Internet access.

Vocabulary Tips:
parade-(n),(v)-遊行,
*Many townspeople gathered at the plaza to watch the parade.
*People wear green outfits to attend the St. Patrick's Day Parade.
*Firemen and paramedics paraded through the streets.
immigrant-從囯外移民進來的移民 "im"-"進來"的意思, "migr"-字根有"遷移"的意思.
*Leo's father was an Italian immigrant.
*Illegal immigrants will be sent back immediately.
emigrant-遷移到外國的，"em"- “向外”，emigrant -遷移到國外的移民
float-(v)- 飃浮，(n)-花車。
*The float was decorated with carnations and roses.
*The dancers on the floats dressed like characters in fairy tales. 童話故事
magical- doing something with magic, but here means " wonderful, very exciting."
athletic-運動
* Figure skating has become more and more athletic over the last ten years.
*Melody is an athletic girl. She's good at many sport.
determined-決定， 取決於，立志，立定志向。
*When Nancy left her hometown, she was determined to return one day as a successful business person.
*Your health is determined by your lifestyle and your diet.
break into-進入，潛入
*Samuel broke into the world of computer programing design when he was only 12.
*Entering beauty contests is one of the ways to break into show business.

Chat Room
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
parade-遊行， 行列，炫耀。
a parade of people-行列，人一個接一個出現。
a parade of books-接連不斷的書
parade around the neighborhood in his new car. 繞來繞去在街上炫耀他的新車。

I'm impressed.