Coming from their respective acting hiatuses, former child actress Lindsay Lohan and Glee alum Chord Overstreet star in "Falling for Christmas," a romantic holiday comedy set in a charming ski resort.
After a freak faux skiing accident, heiress Sierra Belmont (Lohan) crashes into the sights of Jake Russell (Overstreet)-- regular guy who also happens to be some kind of local hero. The premise is a little “Crash Landing On You,” but comparison will be unfair since we only have a few minutes with their characters and had all of 16 episodes to be charmed by Bin Jin.
Holiday romcoms are a staple at Christmastime. And while I deliberately add them to my streaming list, I’ve rolled my eyes more than a few times while watching.
A bland script, a struggling business that needs to be saved, a small town that’s upended by a usually haughty visitor, cookie-cutter-pretty leads who seem uncomfortable with each other, maybe throw some royalty in there and/or a case of mistaken/ secret/ forgotten identity, a whirlwind romance, a conflict that resolves itself, and a predictable happy ending in a scene that seems to have been shot inside a snow globe. That’s already 90% of the holiday romcoms you’ll see in your lifetime. They’re unspoilable.
Sierra wakes up with no idea who she is (i.e., another trope)
Image: Netflix
Most of us deal with post-holiday blues, when our moods drop right after the celebrations of Christmas and New Year. So while holiday films aren’t always the best quality cinema, I like watching them this season because it’s my low-key version of savoring.
Savoring is the capacity of attending to, appreciating, and enhancing positive experiences according to authors Fred Bryant and Joseph Veroff.
It can help make the most of this season that comes only once a year.
The result of savoring practices is typically an increase in positive affect, which is the extent to which one experiences positive moods such as joy, interest, and alertness.
In the classic “A Christmas Carol,” Ebenezer Scrooge faces three ghosts: the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come [future]. Savoring also has three main kinds where you can choose to savor the past, the present, or the future.
Here are some savoring exercises we can do to enhance our enjoyment of this season.
Savoring the Past
Image: Unsplash/AndrewThornebrooke
1) Reflecting on Acts of Kindness
Activity: Record acts of kindness toward others
Duration: Daily for 7 days
According to a study by Otake, Shimai, Tanaka-Matsumi, Otsui, & Fredrickson (2006), counting one’s own acts of kindness for one week increased subjective happiness.
2) Positive Reminiscence
Activity: Reminiscence about positive events by using memorabilia or cognitive imagery (mental pictures)
Duration: 2 sessions of 10 minutes each day over 1 week
In a study by Bryant, Smart, & King (2005), groups that reminisced pleasant memories using either cognitive imagery or memorabilia reported an increased percent of time they felt happier, than the control group who thought about current concerns.
While both groups exhibited an increase in positive affect, interestingly, happiness was noted to be higher in those asked to remember through mental images rather than those who were shown memorabilia.
Savoring the Present
Image: Pexels/TirachardKumtanom
3) Mindful Photography
Activity: Take meaningful photographs
Duration: 15 minutes twice this week
Mindful photography allows people to examine their everyday lives though a camera lens, with an eye for beauty and meaning. In a study by Kurtz (2012), this has shown to increase mood in the short-term.
Savoring the Future
Image: Pexels/PiktureGallery
4) Benefiting from Scarcity
Activity - Think about the impermanence of a positive event.
We tend to savor an experience more when we reflect on the fact that it will end at some point, especially if it’s soon.
According to a study by Kurzban & Leary (2001), it was concluded that anticipation evolves for anticipated scarcity.
Another experiment shows that we have a positivity bias for end experiences. In the O’Brien & Ellsworth (2012) experiment, participants were asked to taste 5 Hershey’s kisses of different flavors picked in random order, and rate its enjoyability from 1-10. They were divided into 2 groups where in 1st group, the experimenter would say, “Here is your next chocolate” before giving chocolates 2-5. In the 2nd group, the experimenter would follow this script but say, “Here is your last chocolate” before giving the 5th.
The results showed that participants in the group who were told it was their “last” chocolate rated it as more enjoyable as those who were told it was their “next.” Also, 64% of those told it was their last chocolate, rated the 5th chocolate as their favorite, compared to 22% of those told the 5th was their next.
Studies show that any of these activities enhance mood and positive affect.
So as to not spoil anybody who plans on watching, let’s just skip to the bloopers at the end of the film. It seemed like the cast had a lot of fun shooting it. And that’s what the holidays should feel like. Warm and light, comforting and family-friendly fun – like a cup of hot cocoa.
With holiday films, the quality isn’t the point. The objective is to get you in the mood for the holidays with a film that can be watched by the entire family.
Besides, these days... who doesn’t like a happy ending?
“Christmas is a time for miracles.” – Avy Russell, Falling for Christmas Image: Netflix
PS: We also have a resource on how to boost positive affect and happiness on this site. Check it out here!
Being with family tops the list of my enjoyment of the season!
Everything is very open with a really clear description of the issues. It was definitely informative. Your site is useful. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much and we’re glad you found it useful! Hope you can check out the other wellness tips as well, see you around!