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Helping others through activities like community service and random acts of kindness makes us feel good and triggers a fascinating biological phenomenon called a “helper’s high. The positive feelings that our kids can experience from giving to others helps make them happier and healthier by reducing stress and anxiety and feelings of sadness, loneliness, or depression. Given my focus on nature and mental health, I am putting a special ecohappiness spin on Random Acts of Kindness Day. * Take your kids on a nature walk to collect items like sticks, fallen leaves and flower petals, pebbles, etc., and ask them to use what they find to create get-well cards to distribute.

Practicing lovingkindness meditation can cause us to feel less isolated and more connected to the world around us as we shift the way we view ourselves and others to kindness instead of negativity. Like other types of meditation, lovingkindness meditation brings so many amazing benefits to our lives such as: Lifting our mood and producing more positive emotions Increasing positive social emotions toward new people as well as loved ones Increasing self-love and how we feel about ourselves * Increasing positive social emotions toward new people as well as loved ones * Increasing self-love and how we feel about ourselves After learning about all the benefits, don’t you just want to share some lovingkindness with your kids right now? Finally, direct the Metta towards the entire planet: May all beings everywhere be safe… By practicing lovingkindness meditation directed towards nature, our children will feel happier and more connected to their natural environment and more relaxed as a result of focusing on something beautiful, awe-inspiring, and positive.

That is the time in which oxytocin (the feel-good hormone) is released in our body and the many benefits of hugging kick in—improved immune system, reduced stress, lower blood pressure, better sleep patterns, and more. Having a meditative hugging experience with a loved one, pet, or even a tree can help us feel happier, calmer, and more connected. Hugging a tree is a different experience than hugging another human or animal. Now that you know all the incredible benefits of hugging a tree, grab your kids and head outside for some soothing tree hugging meditation.

Celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving (in the U. S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday kicks off the charitable season, when many focus on their holiday and end-of-year giving. In 2005, author and Children & Nature Network (C&NN) co-founder Richard Louv published his groundbreaking book, Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. The organization supports and mobilizes leaders, educators, activists, practitioners and parents working to turn the trend of an indoor childhood back out to the benefits of nature–and to increase safe and equitable access to the natural world for all. C&NN envisions a world in which children have access to the benefits of nature everywhere they live, learn, and play and has the mission is to increase equitable access to nature so that children–and the natural world–can thrive.