Concepts of happiness

Question 1

down in the dumps

Answer 1

(informal) feeling of unhappiness, sometimes with no hope.

that are many things that could make you feel down in the dumps, but what are the things that keep you feeling happy, cheerful and chirpy? Oh many things like being healthy, having good friends,

Question 2

imperfection

Answer 2

fault or weakness

Millennials and perhaps older people are better at remembering wabi-sabi – this traditional Japanese concept around celebrating imperfection, which I think is something so helpful these days, especially for women – it’s this idea that there is a beauty in ageing, it’s to be celebrated rather than trying to disguise it, or trying to cover up the scars instead you gild them with kintsugi – if you break a pot instead of chucking it away, you mend it with gold lacquer so the scars, rather than being hidden, are highlighted in pure gold… We all have laughter lines and rather than being ashamed of them, they’re something to be celebrated.

You won’t find any imperfections in this programme,

Question 3

gild

Answer 3

cover something in a thin layer of gold.

Millennials and perhaps older people are better at remembering wabi-sabi – this traditional Japanese concept around celebrating imperfection, which I think is something so helpful these days, especially for women – it’s this idea that there is a beauty in ageing, it’s to be celebrated rather than trying to disguise it, or trying to cover up the scars instead you gild them with kintsugi – if you break a pot instead of chucking it away, you mend it with gold lacquer so the scars, rather than being hidden, are highlighted in pure gold… We all have laughter lines and rather than being ashamed of them, they’re something to be celebrated.
Maybe we should gild this script.

Question 4

jolly

Answer 4

cheerful and happy.

In England what we have is 'jolly', which many of us now associate with this kind of 'jolly hockey sticks' or maybe an upper-class thing but actually it's something that really plays through a lot of British culture in a way that we may not think of so much.
Helen now thinks 'jolly' describes an attitude that is used as a coping mechanism – that's something someone does to deal with a difficult situation. We smile, do everyday things – like walking the dog – and just get on with life.

Question 5

coping mechanism

Answer 5

something someone does to deal with a difficult situation.

you get out there, you go for a dog walk, you have a boiled egg and soldiers [‘soldiers’ in this case are small slices of toast that you can dip into your egg and eat], and we do sort of get on with things – it’s a coping mechanism, it’s not perfect but it’s worked for many Brits for a while.
Helen now thinks ‘jolly’ describes an attitude that is used as a coping mechanism.