Music, Sounds of Nature, Sounds of Happiness

Submitted by tonyplant on October 30, 2006 - 11:54.

One of my quick fix suggestions for mood-lifts is that people with MP3 players should put together a mood lifting playlist - pieces that always make your feet tap or get you moving. With the growing sophistication of mobile phones and MP3 players, I advise people to put together a slideshow of images that make them smile, give them a fond memory etc. When I ran a session for young carers recently, the photo of the young cottontail rabbit was very popular with the girls. There are lots of photographs available for download from Flickr and it can be mood-lifting just to look through them.

The Telegraph carries a piece about the Lake District Tourist Board who are doing their best to inspire us now that we are slumped in the end of year doldrums. They are offering a hotline and MP3 downloads of soothing sounds, ranging from the fresh air blowing across England's highest mountain, to a reading of Wordsworth's Daffodils or Cumberland sausage sizzling in a pan.

Eric Robson, of Cumbria Tourism, the organisation behind the telephone line, said: “Many people dread the clocks going back but our Lake District Escape Line will inspire them to think more positively about winter and get outdoors.”

Have a flick through the download files and see if there's something that suits you. For me, the only inexplicable omission, is the sound of contentment that accompanies eating that fine dish, guaranteed to contribute to any tourist's gruntlement, the Cartmel Sticky Toffee Pudding, along with the sound of someone scraping the pattern of the bowl-despite what their mummies told them-and the gentle swish of a tummy-rub.

Copyright 2006, Tony Plant Happystance Project

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