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Category: Communicating and Relating

Many are a bit lost with Communicating and Relating with People – especially first time, making Friends or Acquaintances. So many of us have been brought up with Busy or Distracted Working Parents or even 2 or 3 generations of such in the Family and this leaves you clueless. We would all like to improve our Relationships I’m sure. This New Category is for both. Cheers!

Published on Leave a comment on Part 1: The Sandhill Paradigm — What the Suburban Shift Is Costing Our Kids

By Janet Vargas - Independent Natural Health Researcher 30+ Yrs
With Guided and Selected AI Assistance

Look into a Modern Suburban Living Room, and you will likely see a tragedy in slow motion: a Child confined to a couch, staring passively at a Screen, shut away from the living world. It is highly unfair that modern life systematically denies children their inborn instincts to explore nature. We have traded the wild, expansive development of the human spirit for a sedentary, couch-potato existence.

In the Evenings at least. Think of all the Fun or Creative or Family Things we miss out on during those wasted hours (often) and all the times we have wished we had more time? We can more often have Precious Bonding Moments in the Evenings which can bring treasured memories.

I know exactly what our Children are Missing because I lived the alternative. For twelve beautiful, formative years, my world was a Country Beach Town. My child years were defined by a rich landscape of tall trees to climb, big slopy sandhills by a flowing river to venture, an endless shoreline to stroll along and splash in, and neighbouring paddocks that invited endless venture and exploration.…

Published on Leave a comment on Do You Use Tech Devices A Lot and the Dopamine Monster Says “Give Me, Give Me” and Wants More? Here’s Help!

By Janet Vargas - Independent Natural Health Researcher 30+ Yrs
With Guided and Selected AI Assistance

Tech Devices and Dopamine Cravings: Causing unperceived disruption in our Brain (mind and emotions) more than we realise often. Sometimes it is even responsible for Stressed Marriages and Disrupting Family Lives!

The Hungry "Give Me, Give Me" Tech Related Sabotager Dopamine:
How It Negatively Affects Home Life, Marriages and Families. Take Care!

It Diminishes Anything or Everything from Home Chores and Practical Things to Personal Communications; Productive Living; Bonding with Loved Ones; Connectiveness in Parenting - so Vital; Planning Our Days; Attending to Responsibilities and Official Matters; it Disrupts Mealtimes and Courtesy to Friends and pretty much Anything Inbetween.

So how do we Handle this Monster we've Created by spending too much time on Computers and Tech Devices?

Here in this Article, you will find some Ideas to Ground You - and Help You Restore Equilibrium, making your Mind Balanced to Communicate with Family Members more Appropriately; Attend to Responsalilities and Focus on Other Things you can Also Enjoy without out the Strong Pull that Addiction to Tech Devices Imposes on Us AND Family Members who Miss our True Presence.…

Published on Leave a comment on Farmers Are Wonderful People – We Enjoy Their Produce Each Day – Let’s Defend Their Interests and Give Them a Fair Go!

By Janet Vargas - People's Advocate on Ours Australia!

I'M WISHING TO PROTECT and DEFEND OUR FARMERS. WILL YOU COME and JOIN ME - WITH YOUR COMMENTS and SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THINGS YOU READ HERE? WE WHO LIVE IN THE CITIES AND SUBURBS SHOULD STOP THINKING OF THEM AS SEPERATE TO US (because we have a different say of life) MAYBE "Poor Farmers, they're on the News again" IS THE BEST THOUGHTS WE COME UP WITH Like it's their Plight WHEN THEY PROVIDE OUR FOOD EVERYDAY. WE SHOULD FIND IT IN OUR HEARTS TO CLOSE THIS "Separation" THING. HONESTLY FRIENDS, WE COULD NOT "Live Without Them" YES REALLY. THINK ABOUT IT and LET THEM KNOW We Care About Them - They're Not On Their Own Anymore IN THE CHALLENGES THEY FACE For Us and Their Families. WOULD YOU CARE TO JOIN ME?

Through the years, there has been such disregard for Farmers - we buy most our Groceries in Fancy Packets and Produce from Modern Supermarkets, forgetting Our FARMERS WHO FEED US - they somehow don't come to mind. I was brought up close to a Dairyman and barley Crops across the road from us and Eggs from the neighbours, in a small Country Beach Town for 14 years before living North-East of the City.…

Published on Leave a comment on Kindness Week – Let It Be Kindness Every Week:)

Small Acts Of Kindness Can Create Ripples Of Joy
That Brighten Someone’s Day—And Yours, Too

Kindness doesn’t have to be grand to matter. Small gestures, like a compliment, a helping hand, or simply being there for someone, can leave a lasting impression on the people around you. These thoughtful, simple actions not only spread positivity but also remind us of the beauty of human connection.

Kindness Can Spread Happiness
Care To Join Me?

Compliment Someone

A genuine compliment can make someone's day brighter. Notice the little things—like their smile or the effort they put into their work—and let them know you see them. Your kind words might linger with them longer than you expect.

Write a Thank-You Note

A handwritten note of gratitude feels like a rare treasure in a digital age. Thank someone for their time, kindness, or a small favor—they’ll cherish the thoughtfulness. It’s an act that costs little but means a lot.

Hold the Door Open

Pausing to hold the door for someone is a small but mighty gesture. It shows respect and reminds people that kindness exists in everyday moments. Bonus: it often earns you a smile or a thank you in return.…

Published on Leave a comment on Habits People Over 60 Still Practice That Quietly Built Stronger Families Than Most Modern Advice Ever Could

Maybe the Best Modern Advice isn’t New at all.
It’s time we Start Practicing what they Never Stopped Doing.

By Adam Kelton from Veg Out Mag

We like to think our generation has it all figured out.

We have life coaches, mindfulness apps, therapy podcasts, and endless advice online.

But talk to someone in their 60s or 70s, and you’ll quickly realize that many of them built something that feels increasingly rare: families that actually stay close, grounded, and connected.

They didn’t have fancy tools or self-help jargon.

What they had were simple habits that worked because they were lived, not preached.

Here are nine of those habits that quietly built stronger families than most modern advice ever could.

Families Who Eat Together Are Often Happier
Shared Mealtimes Are Good For Bonding

They Ate Together

It sounds small, but this one was the glue.

In most homes decades ago, dinner wasn’t optional.

You didn’t scroll through your phone in the living room or grab a plate and disappear to your room.

You sat down, waited for everyone, and ate together.

Psychologists have since confirmed what our grandparents already knew: shared meals strengthen emotional bonds, improve communication, and reduce the chances of kids developing anxiety or depression.…

Published on Leave a comment on ‘I Married The Train Driver Who Saved My Life’ A Couple Share Their Story To Help Those Who Feel Down

From the BBC Good News

This article contains a small reference to suicide and a mental health issue.

On a summer afternoon in 2019, nurse Charlotte Lay got ready for her night shift as normal but "wasn't feeling quite right".

Within a short space of time she had decided to end her own life close to a West Yorkshire railway station.

But thanks to the kindness of the train driver who found her in crisis, she did not go through with it.

Three years later they married each other and went on to have children.

The couple credit each other with saving their lives

"I'd struggled with my mental health since my teens and I'd been in and out of the system since," Charlotte, now 33, says.

Her memories of that day five years ago are "quite blurry" but she says she remembers seeing a train pulling up on the tracks where she was.

"I remember seeing a man getting off the train and starting to panic and thinking he was going to tell me off," she recalls.

"He approached me and said 'hi, my name is Dave, are you having a bad day?'…

Published on Leave a comment on The No. 1 Sign You Were Raised by a Narcissist, According to a Psychologist

Story by Caroline Kee

If you've been on the internet lately, you've probably seen the term "narcissist" thrown around. It's become a common label used to describe toxic traits and behaviors, often in the context of romantic relationships.

You may think of the classic love-bombing, manipulative cheater or the arrogant, entitled spouse who is always right.

Another type of relationship that's often plagued by narcissism is the one between a parent and child. The narcissistic parent trope is often depicted in film, such as Faye Dunaway's role in "Mommie Dearest," or the neglectful parents in "Matilda."

Narcissistic parents can shape the entire family dynamic and have a lasting impact on a child's wellbeing. However, children of narcissists may not realize this until they're struggling with the effects years or decades later.

How can you tell if a parent was a narcissist? TODAY.com spoke to Ramani Durvasula, Ph.D., clinical psychologist, narcissism expert and author of "It's Not You," about the telltale signs that a person might've been raised by a narcissistic parent or caregiver.

What Is Narcissism?

"Narcissism is a personality style or pattern that's characterized by some pretty set qualities and traits, and you have to have most, if not all, of them to call someone narcissistic," Durvasula tells TODAY.com.…

Published on Leave a comment on If You Heard These 10 Phrases As A Child, You Were Raised By People Who Never Healed From Their Own Trauma

By Farley Ledgerwood

Is This You Or Your Parents? Healing From Traumas - It Is Possible!

Some wounds don’t end with the person who got hurt.

They get passed down—quietly, unconsciously—from parent to child. Not always through actions. Sometimes, it’s through words. Offhand phrases. Things said in anger or stress or fear. Words that, at the time, might have sounded like discipline or “tough love,” but left a mark that still lingers today.

I’ve heard these phrases in friends’ stories, in quiet confessions over coffee, and even from people who weren’t sure why certain memories still sting.

In most cases, the parents weren’t bad people. They were tired. Overwhelmed. Still hurting from things they never fully processed. And without realizing it, they handed some of that pain to the next generation.

Parents Need To Heal From Trauma
and So Do You

If you grew up hearing any of these phrases, you might have been raised by someone who never got the healing they needed. And that’s not about blame—it’s about understanding.

Because healing often begins with recognizing what we’ve absorbed—and deciding what we won’t pass on.

1. “Stop crying before I give you something to cry about”

It sends the message that your emotions are a threat.…

Published on Leave a comment on 10 Life Experiences That Have Quietly Made You A Better Person, Says Psychology

By Farley Ledgerwood

Life can be a wild ride, throwing experiences at you that reshape and redefine you in unexpected ways. And guess what? Many of these experiences, according to psychology, are quietly making you a better person.

Let’s get personal. We’ve all had moments that challenged us, made us grow, or changed our perspective.

But did you know that these very experiences might have been subtly improving you as a person? Now that’s food for thought!

Let’s dive in and explore ten life experiences that psychology says have been quietly transforming you into a better version of yourself.

And remember, it’s not about the big, monumental changes – sometimes it’s the quiet ones that make the loudest impact.

Wiser and Brighter through
Struggles and Triumphs

1) Embracing failure

Failure is a fact of life. It’s unavoidable. But how we react to failure is what truly defines us.

Psychologists have found that those who see failure as a learning opportunity, rather than a setback, exhibit higher levels of resilience and personal growth.

This doesn’t mean that failure doesn’t sting; but it’s about shifting perspective and seeing it as a stepping stone to success.…

Published on Leave a comment on My Husband Asked our Retired Neighbour if he could Borrow his Truck. He’s Now Like a Grandad to Our Kids and is Part of Our Family!

Do you like Nice Stories? I like Nice Stories and don’t have much time to read them often. When noticing this Title come up on my Mobile, I made time to read it immediately, even though I was about to do something that very minute, and decided to put other things aside for 15-30 Mins while I place it on Ours Australia for You to share the Joy of reading it. So forget Politics Squabbles and what-not for a while, would you like to join me?

This Essay is by Kris Ann Valdez from Business Insider

Neighbour Friendships At Their Best -
It Doesn't Get Better Than This!

My husband and I found a sinkhole in our backyard. When we received a high bid to fix it, we decided to D.I.Y. the project following our contractor friend's detailed instructions.

The job required a few tons of dirt — more than our Subaru Forester could haul. My husband had eyed our neighbour's truck in the driveway. Even though we had lived next door to each other for 11 years, I really only knew that his name was Gary and that he was a retired bachelor.…