Do you want to live with a strong sense of peacefulness, happiness, goodness, and self-respect? The collection of happiness actions broadly categorized(把……归类) as “honor” help you create this life of good feelings.

    Here's an example to show how honorable actions create happiness.

    Say a store clerk fails to charge us for an item. If we keep silent, and profit from the clerk's mistake, we would drive home with a sense of sneaky (暗中的) excitement. Later we might tell our family or friends about our good fortune. On the other hand, if we tell the clerk about the uncharged item, the clerk would be grateful and thank us for our honesty. We would leave the store with a quiet sense of honor that we might never share with another soul.

    Then, what is it to do with our sense of happiness?

    In the first case, where we don't tell the clerk, a couple of things would happen. Deep down inside we would know ourselves as a type of thief. In the process, we would lose some peace of mind and self-respect. We would also demonstrate that we cannot be trusted, since we advertise our dishonor by telling our family and friends. We damage our own reputations by telling others. In contrast, bringing the error to the clerk's attention causes different things to happen. Immediately the clerk knows us to be honorable. Upon leaving the store, we feel honorable and our self-respect is increased. Whenever we take honorable actions we gain the deep internal rewards of goodness and a sense of nobility.

    There is a beautiful positive cycle that is created by living a life of honorable actions.

    Honorable thoughts lead to honorable actions. Honorable actions lead us to a happier existence. And it's easy to think and act honorably again when we're happy. While the positive cycle can be difficult to start, once it's started, it's easy to continue. Keeping on doing good deeds brings us peace of mind, which is important for our happiness.

    A day in the life of 18-year-old David Lanster is full of typical teenage stuff: school, baseball practice, homework. And then he starts cooking.

    “Some nights I'm up until I am making pies, or even later if we're braising (蒸) beef,” said the student at Ransom Everglades High School in Florida, US.

    For the past year, Lanster and Kelly Moran, his classmate, have been hosting fancy dinner parties at Lanster's parents' home. Their meals have 17 courses and are all made by them.

    Their guests used to give them gifts to thank them, until the pair decided to do something nice for charity (慈善).

    “We got some really great Miami Heat tickets, a nice watch, and many kitchen gadgets (小物件),” Lanster said. “But we wanted to make this something positive for people other than us.”

    Lanster and Moran focused on Common Threads, a charity that aims to teach kids in poor communities (社区) to cook and make healthy eating choices.

    The young cooks ask their guests to give however much they want as payment for their meals. It all goes to Common Threads because Lanster's parents cover their food costs. After their last 12-person event, Lanster and Moran gave $1,600 (10,600 yuan) to the charity.

    Now, they're taking their show out of the kitchen and on the road. Lanster and Moran have started to organize private dinner parties with a similar model: the host pays for the ingredients, and the guests make a donation to a charity of their choice.

    Without formal (正规的) training, Lanster said he had been interested in cooking since he helped his mom in the kitchen when he was very young. He learned how to cook by reading cookbooks and watching TV programs.

    Outside the kitchen, the two are busy preparing their college applications.Neither is sure what they will do in the future, but they've promised their parents that they'll leave professional cooking alone until they finish school.

Gift Guide

    Chocolates

    The weather outside may be frightful but the smiles and smells inside are abundant! For all those special people on our Christmas girl list, send the sweat treats to help spread the joyous holiday cheer. What is the perfect gift for any occasion? Chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate!

    La Place Collection

    Location: Suite 3, 41 Xinyuanjie, near Beijing Chateau

    Tel: 010-64668090

    Comptoirs de France Bakery

    Location: Rm 102, 1/F, Building 15, China Central Place, 89 Jianguolu.

    Tel: 010-65305480

    Awfully Chocolate

    Location: 108, Building 2, Beijing Wanda Plaza, 87 Jianguolu.

    Tel: 010-58205826

    Recipe books

    A recipe book from a different culture provides a chance to change up a Christmas dinner. Think about sitting down to a table of Mexican wedding cookies, Norwegian lefse, Chilean salmon, cream cheese lart and Chinese dishes. If you can't find the right one in time, search online, print the page and bind them into a book yourself. Nothing says, "I really care!" more than making an effort.

    Wine

    Get to the nearest Carrefour, and seize a bottle of good wine from among the 600 choices available there from Italy, Spain, the United States, Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Switzerland. 150-3, 000 yuan a bottle.

    Location: Wine section on 2/F, Carrefour Shuangjing Branch, 31 Guangqu Lu, Chaoyang District.

    Opening hours: 9 a. m.- 10p. m.

    Tel: 010-51909508/09

    Pearls

    The top level of Hongqiao Market has strand upon strand of pearls in every shape and color imaginable. Pearls never go out of style and make for a good gift for women with classic tastes.

    Hongqiao Market

    Location: Tian Tan East Road, east of the Temple of Heaven

    Opening hours: 8: 30 a. m.-9 p. m., open daily

    Tel: 010-67133354

Dear Jamie,

    I'm writing to you because I feel like we've grown distant lately. I know you have two little babies now that take up most of your attention, but I want to remind you that I'm your dog. My name is Max, and I am here long before those two troublemakers joined our family. The older one, Hannah, keeps trying to ride me. She knows I'm not a horse, right? Let's remember that I'm 11 now. That's 77 years old to you, friend. So how about showing me some respect I deserve?

    Anyway, I'm still an official part of this family. I know I have made mistakes with food, but those kids are covered with so much food. It's like an alcoholic living in a wine store. I have tried harder not to eat their food, but this business of forcing me to the backyard for most of the day was unacceptable.

    And when you told your wife Kate that you wanted to drop me off in the valley to live with wolves, well, that hurt my self-respect. And did you have to do it right in front of me? I might be old, but I can still hear.

    Remember the old days? By the time you came into the picture, I had already known Kate for three years. And then you came along. I knew she liked you so I welcomed you into our world. I remembered one night, she asked me if I thought you were the one. I barked "yes" repeatedly because I thought you would take great care of us. And you did.

    Look, I know you're a father of two now, but please try to include me a little bit more. That's all I'm asking.

Sincerely yours,

Max the Puggle

Plants, and the insects which rely on them, are the living foundations of our planet. But these foundations are under stress because we have a tendency to replace fields and forests with decorative trees and shrubs imported from around the world. Adding to the problem, our obsession (痴迷) with perfection leads us to use a lot of pesticides (杀虫剂).

These actions are part of the reason global biodiversity is crashing. There are over three billion fewer wild birds in North America than there were in 1970. Recent research shows that insect numbers, even in nature reserves, have fallen, and 40 percent of all insect species may be extinct within a few decades. This is discouraging news; however, there are actions we can take to help bring at least some species back.

The first step is to redefine our concept of "garden" to include more than just plants. We need to intentionally share our space, and not just with the birds, bees and butterflies that visit our flowers, but also with the little insects that may eat a part (very rarely all) of our plants. Therefore, we must limit pesticide use. It's crucial to support nature's recovery, and it's much better for everyone: no doctor has ever recommended long-term exposure to pesticides.

Many drought-tolerant plants brought in from across the planet are being passed off as ecofriendly. However, mostly they're not. Yes, you're saving water, but these foreign plants can become disasters when they escape our yards. Helping the environment can be about more than saving water. Even in drier areas, like the American West, the selection of attractive native plants to choose from is vast. If dry is your style, there are native wildflowers, flowering bushes and trees that allow you to save water and nature.

Xeriscapes (节水型园艺) leave many gardeners thirsting for green, and there's an important alternative that has been largely ignored. For those disenchanted with dry landscaping, using underappreciated and water-loving native plants to make your garden a real-life oasis (绿洲) could be lifesaving to wildlife. In nature, this unsung group of native plants is limited to riparian zones, the narrow belts of green along water bodies, but if consumers demand them, nurseries will increasingly carry these riparian species, and the presence of such plants in the garden will provide for many animals including not just butterflies and their relatives but also colorful birds.

The ideal garden would offer a combination of drought-tolerant native plants and a few species that need a little more water, providing options for little guests and the bigger ones that will come to eat them. As more creatures stop by to share our yards, we will be making nature, and us all, a little healthier.

Aptitude Tests Recommendations

Aptitude tests are helpful to job seekers of all ages. While career quizzes explore your values and work style, aptitude tests provide a more objective evaluation of your skills, helping you select a career you're most likely to succeed in. Below are some of the best aptitude tests out there. 

Clifton Strengths

The Clifton Strengths program was created based on research around leadership. The research in question pointed to common strengths among successful leaders, like strategic thinking, adaptability and communication. To complete the test, you must answer around 150 questions, each within 20 seconds. Allen Cheung, a tech blogger, notes that CliftonStrengths is more valuable than your average career test because it includes "tricky questions which aren't as easily gamed". 

Red BullWingfinder

Developed and tested out by psychology experts, the Red Bull Wingfinder assesses your thinking under pressure. Questions include image sorting, logic puzzles and leadership-related questions. Once you complete the test, you'll receive a nine-page report and career coaching tailored to your results. 

SEI Development Report

The SEI Development Report is an extensive EQ aptitude test that has timed right-and-wrong answers that assess eight fundamentals, including emotional literacy, emotional management and empathy. At the end, you'll receive a 20-page report with recommended courses on workplace EQ development. 

CareerOneStop

While it only takes a few minutes to complete, the CareerOneStop Skills Assessment will help you rank both your technical and soft skills. The career suggestions at the end can be sorted by relevance, annual wages, and job outlook, coupled with with professional coaching or consultation improve your skills.