JumpStart National Strawberry Ice Cream Day (1/15/24)

Funny story about Strawberry ice cream:

Waaay back when we were newly married and living in NC, we met my in-laws in Asheville, NC for a weekend of touring the Biltmore Mansion, shopping, visiting, and (of course) stopping for ice cream.  Now, it’s customary in my wife’s family that you share food (which I’ve gotten used to), and as a rule, they are not fans of desserts with fruit in them.  We were in a little ice cream shop, and everyone gave their orders:  butter pecan, vanilla, rocky road… and then I order strawberry (because YUM!).  As one, they all turn to look at me and exclaim, “Strawberry?!” Anyone who has experienced a new relationship with their partner’s parents knows EXACTLY what I was feeling at that moment.

I still stand behind my decision, and they’ve moved on.  It’s actually in the family lore now. :)

Big Idea:  Lisa Feldman Barrett wrote a great book (and one that I return to often).  That unquestionably puts emotions within the physiological purview of the body. How Emotions are Made:  The Secret Life of the Brain is a thick read but worth your time. (She attributes today’s quote to Buddhism, but in my research, it’s more complicated than that.)

I summarize the 291 pages like this:

• Your brain is locked away in a dark silent space yet reveals a light- and sound-filled world to us.
• To do this, it uses information from outside and inside the body.
• Caveat:  it has to use as little energy as possible, so it predicts rather than reacts
• Information coming in simply tweaks these predictions.
• Most of our life is run on these predictions which are based 100% on past experiences.  You don’t REALLY think about everything you do.

Therefore, when you feel stressed, your brain has predicted that there will be a big metabolic outlay necessary in the next moment. Your body only has so much energy, and so if the body’s energy budget is already low due to lack of sleep, poor diet and exercise, your brain becomes decreasingly able to regulate the body.  You will experience that as fatigue, negative mood, or distress.

Basically, whenever we feel a negative emotion, it’s not anyone’s fault, it most likely has a root in how our body is using its energy (our metabolism) based on how it made a prediction based on our past experiences.  #mindblown

Check out Dr. Barrett’s interviews on The Hidden Brain and The Psychology Podcast
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This week, try this: The next time you feel ‘some kind of way’ about what someone says or does, turn to curiosity.  If you question why someone feels the way they do, it’s just about impossible to feel both anger and curiosity at the same time.

Quote:  "Anger is a form of ignorance."

Educator Resource:  Mindfulness-Based SEL Micro-Credential - from the Coalition of Schools Educating Mindfully (COSEM).  Have you ever wanted to learn more about HOW to bring mindfulness into your classroom?  This is for you!
COSEM, located in Chicago, created this micro-credential as a learning opportunity that is accessible for teachers and leaders. It offers quality learning but is not as commitment-intensive as a full yoga or mindfulness teacher certification. This program allows you to embody practices at your own pace. By the end, you feel confident developing and leading mindfulness-based SEL experiences, and have a credential to validate your learning, no matter your role in schools.
I personally know most of the instructors, and they are top-notch. Highly recommend!

Dad Joke:  What do you call a lazy kangaroo?  A pouch potato.