The festive celebrations and the parties are now all over, the New Year is here and no doubt many of you will have already made the annual ‘resolution’ to mend your wicked ways in some way or another. Usually, we resolve to eat less junk food, cut down on alcohol, get ourselves more organised, do more exercise etc, etc. All highly commendable stuff.
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Our outlook and attitude to life in general plays a huge part in determining how happy our lives will be, and ultimately, influences how successful we become. Someone who thinks positively about everything is more relaxed, calm and will smile much more than someone who focuses on the negative side, allows stress to get the better of them, and permanently wears a frown.
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It seems impossible to avoid change in our lives, no matter how much we would prefer things to remain the same. Even when these changes offer us the opportunity to transform our lives, they invariably arrive at the worst possible time bringing lots of disruption, frustration or pain. Some of the brighter opportunities often bring all three together. It just doesn’t seem fair.
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Now that winter is in full swing it is not uncommon to find ourselves wanting to stay in bed that little bit longer to keep snug and warm. I must admit, it’s certainly much easier to get out of bed on a bright summers morning than it is when it’s cold, dark and raining outside. And on top of all that, the colder weather brings with it the misery of blocked noses, cold feet, aching joints – and summer seems so very, very far away. . . . . .
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Only a month ago we were all celebrating the arrival of the New Year with parties and extravagant fireworks displays, but for many of us it already feels like six long months ago. Yet here we are, still stuck in the gloom of winter up to our armpits in bad news and snow.

Keeping a cheerful outlook throughout the drudgery of winter can be a struggle at the best of times, and if the long dark mornings and evenings haven’t started to drag you down yet, the constant carping in the media about the credit crunch and recession surely must have. Read more…

Elemi is the soft, fragrant oleoresin obtained from the trunk of the Canarium luzonicum tree, which is also botanically known as C. commune. Native to Tayabas in the Philippines where it is known as ‘Pili’, this fragrant, tropical tree or shrub grows in South and Central America, Australia, Brazil, India, the Malay Peninsula and Moluccas.
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