March 20 marks the first day of spring … or the vernal equinox, which occurs at at 5:01 a.m. EST that morning.
It is also the UN’s International Day of Happiness, which is marked by the release of the 13th annual World Happiness Report.
This report ranks the world’s happiest countries by asking people to evaluate their lives. Claiming first place for the eighth year in succession is Finland, followed by Denmark, Iceland and Sweden in that order. The US came in at 24th place—its lowest-ever position.
A few salient points from the report are:
- Almost 90% of Finns go every week to a sauna, an activity considered good for both physical and mental health.
- Sharing meals with others was strongly linked with wellbeing.
- Declining happiness and social trust in the US … combined to explain the rise and direction of political polarisation.
A glance at some Old Lyme-related social media suggests—and please note, we say this tongue-in-cheek—we all need to eat together more often … and take more saunas!