avatarVidya Sury, Collecting Smiles

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Abstract

She says,</p><blockquote id="4db5"><p>… learning another language — any language — keeps the brain functioning at an optimum level as new pathways have to be created.</p></blockquote><div id="e710" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/language-learning-goes-hand-in-hand-with-travel-2e73edba4ed"> <div> <div> <h2>Language Learning Goes Hand in Hand with Travel</h2> <div><h3>…and I love both!</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*qDYUnQd5HuY96GlsIaLo2A.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="2e85"><a href="undefined">Marilyn Flower</a>’s heart-wrenching response to this month’s Know Thyself prompt is a must-read!</p><div id="03b3" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/do-i-ever-get-to-stop-blaming-myself-for-cheating-on-my-husband-6891356540c5"> <div> <div> <h2>Do I Ever Get to Stop Blaming Myself for Cheating on My Husband?</h2> <div><h3>The shame is gone, but the blame lives on</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*bz1-nfa_u5zuTez49DsFgg.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="92bc">Overthinking is never a good thing and <a href="undefined">Savytech articles</a> discusses this in their post. Great read!</p><blockquote id="250f"><p>The idea that we’re prisoners is an overly-simplistic portrayal of reality. Sure, there are some things that are out of our control, but the majority of what happens in our lives is determined by us. In other words, we dictate what happens in our world and who we associate with. However, it’s possible for this idea to take hold in our lives, and we become prisoners of the way we think.</p></blockquote><div id="046b" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-overly-simplistic-portrayal-of-reality-e4b701b611e3"> <div> <div> <h2>The Overly-Simplistic Portrayal of Reality</h2> <div><h3>It’s funny how being an over-thinker can show itself in the simplest of situations</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*7ONIbJ8LqibNjIO44OX_aQ.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="187f"><a href="undefined">E. Katherine Kottaras</a> writes about a book that makes her happy — this book makes me happy too, and I am slightly envious that she wrote about it and I didn’t, yet. I’ve watched some absolutely delightful videos of the two authors and adore them!</p><blockquote id="7254"><p>The book it brings me the most joy is, quite aptly, <i>The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World,</i> by his Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu with Douglas Abrams.</p></blockquote><div id="364e" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-book-that-makes-me-happy-3b92324fd17f"> <div> <div> <h2>A Book That Makes Me Happy</h2> <div><h3>The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*rOydJXyCByl95F1sxlsmZg.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h1 id="7bcd">Honorable mentions</h1><p id="6a3b"><a href="https://readmedium.com/how-the-pressure-to-do-it-all-can-affect-your-mental-health-f03850dabaf1"><b>How The Pressure To Do It All Can Affect Your Mental Health</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Tessa Koller</a></b></p><p id="abaa"><a href="https://readmedium.com/how-can-you-pilgrimage-your-way-back-into-remembrance-59538464351a"><b>How Can you Pilgrimage Your Way Back into Remembrance?</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Carolyn F. Chryst, Ph.D.</a></b></p><p id="4bc0"><a href="https://readmedium.com/why-im-going-back-to-the-9-5-after-2-years-as-a-digital-nomad-a36e4857d2e8"><b>Why I’m Going Back To The 9–5 After 2 Years As A Digital Nomad</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Olivia Mitchell</a></b></p><p id="fa06"><a href="https://readmedium.com/murder-and-mayhem-makes-me-happy-786843dceb77"><b>Murder and Mayhem Makes Me Happy</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Alan Simpson</a></b></p><p id="fb8f"><a href="https://readmedium.com/how-much-money-do-you-need-to-be-happy-1ae4f70284b8"><b>How much money do you need to be happy?</b></a> by <a href="undefined">Chetan Maheshwari</a></p><p id="65b3"><a href="https://readmedium.com/i-refuse-to-say-those-words-unless-it-is-warranted-1d7bccfe3490"><b>I Refuse To Say Those Words Unless It Is Warranted</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Ali</a></b></p><p id="b9a9"><a href="https://readmedium.com/an-important-lesson-ive-learned-from-my-editing-course-ad2b1049ef8e"><b>An Important Lesson I’ve Learned From My Editing Course</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Erica Marie</a></b></p><p id="99d7"><a href="https://readmedium.com/this-one-line-from-a-70s-movie-helps-me-every-day-a007c136de38"><b>This One Line From A 70’s Movie Helps Me Every Day</b></a><b> by <a href="undefined">Andy Taylor</a></b></p><h1 id="2a39">Across Medium</h1><p id="e6bc">Have you read <a href="undefined">Thief</a>’s poetry? Yes? Great! No? You’re in for a treat! Follow and subscribe for a regular dose of word-mastery in verse!</p><div id="050f" class="link-block"> <a href="https://scpercy777.medium.com/o-shakespeare-moderne-972e9059eaf8"> <div> <div> <h2>O Shakespeare Moderne</h2> <div><h3>be done with it!</h3></div> <div><p>scpercy777.medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*WpztWt8z5wAV3ciNomZ1Cw.gif)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="715c"><a href="undefined">Aleid ter Weel</a> suggests 20 things to do instead of scrolling through your phone. Love it!</p><div id="82c9" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/20-things-to-do-instead-of-scrolling-through-your-phone-59d126e3685b"> <div> <div> <h2>20 Things To Do Instead of Scrolling Through Your Phone</h2> <div><h3>Daily micro-habits to help you be more focused and calm every day.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*7SaaawwmPO1rycvikMFRvA.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="bedf"><a href="undefined">Kristina God</a> shares her top three Medium mistakes and tells you how to avoid them.</p><div id="685e" cla

Options

ss="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/oops-my-top-3-medium-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them-b080a41c15b2"> <div> <div> <h2>Oops! My Top 3 Medium Mistakes And How To Avoid Them</h2> <div><h3>you‘ll find these mistakes golden because you can make sure to avoid them</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*VAkUq2gBL2rK6E-O_qca_w.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="e16d"><a href="undefined">Nick Nolan</a> talks about the one word you need in your headlines.</p><div id="ae81" class="link-block"> <a href="https://nick-nolan.medium.com/you-need-this-one-word-in-your-headlines-7a74eac39a8e"> <div> <div> <h2>You Need This One Word in Your Headlines</h2> <div><h3>It’s in every single one of my top 5 earning articles</h3></div> <div><p>nick-nolan.medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*GX9X11ijQ-Q_cv_eCoU3dQ.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="9534">A lovely post by <a href="undefined">Donnette Anglin</a> — truly the best gifts needn’t be those that are wrapped and meant for special occasions.</p><div id="b1ef" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-best-gifts-arent-always-wrapped-or-given-on-special-occasions-ce4ec404209f"> <div> <div> <h2>The Best Gifts Aren't Always Wrapped or Given on Special Occasions.</h2> <div><h3>My dusty present is my most valued treasure.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*QmhlWOffaNZi69C_)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h1 id="85ec">Prompts from our Coffee Times columnists</h1><p id="0c12">Know Thyself: <a href="undefined">Yana Bostongirl</a>’s <a href="https://readmedium.com/why-i-quit-blaming-myself-b499659c0c2d"><b>beautiful prompt is still live</b></a> — look within and respond — free yourself! You can read some of the stories here:</p><div id="160c" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/tear-jerkers-heart-breakers-and-glorious-phoenixes-part1-7302f7a607b3"> <div> <div> <h2>Tear Jerkers, Heart Breakers, and Glorious Phoenixes (Part1)</h2> <div><h3>Our stories are not photoshopped or filtered - they are real, raw, inspiring testimonies of how painful life…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*bsc28lRgBXzHGqTytEC9mg.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="9b88"><b>Books</b>: <a href="https://readmedium.com/what-makes-me-happy-prompt-times-12-4ab3d683930b"><b>Here’s the latest prompt</b></a><b> from <a href="undefined">Marrisa W.</a> </b>and it is all about books and characters that make you happy<b>. </b>Enjoy!</p><p id="c06b"><b>Travel</b>: <a href="undefined">Sharing Randomly</a> has <a href="https://readmedium.com/why-not-have-a-staycation-f101441464cd"><b>a great idea and prompt </b></a>for those itching to travel.</p><p id="e40b"><b>Inspiration</b>: Here’s <a href="https://readmedium.com/inspiration-to-feed-the-soul-41f1848ebe5d"><b>a glimpse into what you can expect</b></a> from <a href="undefined">Vincent Van Patten</a></p><h1 id="4dae">Until next week!</h1><p id="662f">That wraps up this edition of the Coffee Times Weekly Roundup.</p><p id="8a7f">May I request you to please visit the featured posts, engage, comment, like, and clap generously! Community is everything! Thank you ❤</p><h2 id="ea1f">Question for you, my dear readers</h2><p id="238a">Do you have any suggestions for the Coffee Times weekly roundup? Please share in the comments! Thank you.</p><h1 id="9994">With love from the Coffee Times Team</h1><p id="6b6f"><a href="undefined">Winston</a>, <a href="undefined">Dr. Preeti Singh</a>, <a href="undefined">Yana Bostongirl</a>, <a href="undefined">Drashti Shroff</a>, <a href="undefined">Sharing Randomly</a>, <a href="undefined">Marrisa W.</a>, <a href="undefined">Vincent Van Patten</a> and yours truly, <a href="undefined">Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles</a></p><h1 id="8662">Be part of a supportive community of writers!</h1><h2 id="a3fd">Join us as a writer on Coffee Times</h2><div id="d471" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/join-us-at-coffee-times-ec24afce897f"> <div> <div> <h2>Join Us At Coffee Times</h2> <div><h3>Helping new writers at Coffee Times (Jan 2022)</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*j-TtnqYbGF5rrPvP3DNXsg.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h1 id="50aa">Support Coffee Times</h1><p id="0ea5">As you know, Coffee Times publication is not funded by Medium. We exist for the pure joy of supporting fellow writers and growing together. If you would like to support Coffee Times, do consider buying us a coffee <a href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/coffeetimes"><b>here</b></a>.</p><p id="3d6e"><i>Follow Coffee Times on <a href="https://medium.com/coffee-times"><b>Medium</b></a><b>, <a href="https://twitter.com/coffeetimes12">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/coffeetimesmovement">Facebook</a></b></i><b>,<i> <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/coffee-times-movement/detail/recent-activity/">LinkedIn</a></i>,<i> <a href="https://coffeetimes12.substack.com/subscribe">Substack</a></i></b>, <i>and <a href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/coffeetimes"><b>buymeacoffee</b></a><b>.</b></i></p><h2 id="9606">Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles ❤ Did you smile today?</h2><p id="b015">Help me support underprivileged children. <a href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/vidyasury"><b>Buy me a cup of coffee</b></a> ☕ You can also use <a href="https://ko-fi.com/vidyasury"><b>Ko-Fi</b></a><b>. </b>Thank you so much! <a href="https://vidyasury.substack.com/subscribe"><b><i>Subscribe to my daily motivational tip posts on Substack</i></b></a></p><div id="9972" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/hospital-visits-life-lessons-and-gratitude-af16341d059c"> <div> <div> <h2>Hospital Visits, Life Lessons, and Gratitude</h2> <div><h3>Trying to look at the silver lining in every situation</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*oL-SNlSHKXXEr3kP)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

Weekly Roundup of Featured Posts

Coffee Times Weekly Roundup — 13

This week’s featured stories from Coffee Times and across Medium

Photo by René Porter on Unsplash

If there is one thing constant in life, it is CHANGE.

If we don’t change, we don’t grow. If we don’t grow, we aren’t really living.— Gail Sheehy

Do you agree?

I am excited to bring you this week’s roundup of fabulous featured posts from our new home — exclusively for our Coffee Times Substack subscribers. A chosen list will now be the very first to see this post and I look forward to engaging with you all!

Big and wonderful things are in store as Winston mentioned in his post — not the least of which is a brand new Coffee Challenge that will be open ONLY to Friends of Coffee Times.

If you are not yet subscribed to the Coffee Times newsletter, do it now to be a subscriber with full access to Coffee Times Substack here and enjoy a free upgrade to your subscription status.

The ongoing Coffee Times competition has concluded and is now open for voting. After that, the results! Out of 50 participants — who I must say, did a fantastic job — one will be the winner of the grand prize. Keep your eyes on our newsletter to know who won! Will it be you?

We’re barely halfway through January and it already seems like a lot is happening! Coffee Times is growing in leaps and bounds — story submissions are rapidly increasing and yes — that makes my job happier and difficult at the same time.

What can I say? I love it!

This week, India is celebrating Makara Sankranti —the harvest festival. It is called different names in different regions as you can see below:

Photo by News18

To all those celebrating: we wish you a very happy Sankranti!

Vidya Sury’s cake ©

I cooked the festive menu but forgot to take photos! But I did enjoy it, as did my neighbors! Slurrp!

Let’s look at this week’s outstanding posts!

From Coffee Times

I found this post from Ad Meliora about The Whistling Language of La Gomera quite fascinating. Imagine being able to communicate through sounds across vast distances!

The Canarian whistling language or the “Silbo” is a tonal language, which is still practiced by many inhabitants in the Canary Islands today. The reason for the language is to be able to communicate with others over large distances, through mountains and valleys. The ones practicing the language are known as “whistlers”.

What do you do when you have trust issues? Sahil Patel’s heartfelt post is about his journey of healing towards trusting people. Beautifully expressed!

In this new year, I want to make myself free of all the burdens I had in my life. I want to set myself free out there and make myself free from all the blames. To trust others first, I have to trust myself and let myself be who I am.

Rome was not built in a day — as we all know. Every little action counts. Fabio Diolosa recommends that discipline by just reminding ourselves of these two words. What are they?

Gregory Russell Benedikt has an important question for you to reflect on: Where Do You Want to Be In 5 Years? He goes on to describe how a quote changed his life.

If I didn’t get crystal clear on what I wanted my life to look like in five years, nothing would change. My life would be the exact same because I hadn’t taken the time to carefully decide what I was going to aim at over the next 60 months.

Adrienne Beaumont loves languages and travel and writes about how language learning goes hand in hand with travel. But that’s not all! She says,

… learning another language — any language — keeps the brain functioning at an optimum level as new pathways have to be created.

Marilyn Flower’s heart-wrenching response to this month’s Know Thyself prompt is a must-read!

Overthinking is never a good thing and Savytech articles discusses this in their post. Great read!

The idea that we’re prisoners is an overly-simplistic portrayal of reality. Sure, there are some things that are out of our control, but the majority of what happens in our lives is determined by us. In other words, we dictate what happens in our world and who we associate with. However, it’s possible for this idea to take hold in our lives, and we become prisoners of the way we think.

E. Katherine Kottaras writes about a book that makes her happy — this book makes me happy too, and I am slightly envious that she wrote about it and I didn’t, yet. I’ve watched some absolutely delightful videos of the two authors and adore them!

The book it brings me the most joy is, quite aptly, The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, by his Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu with Douglas Abrams.

Honorable mentions

How The Pressure To Do It All Can Affect Your Mental Health by Tessa Koller

How Can you Pilgrimage Your Way Back into Remembrance? by Carolyn F. Chryst, Ph.D.

Why I’m Going Back To The 9–5 After 2 Years As A Digital Nomad by Olivia Mitchell

Murder and Mayhem Makes Me Happy by Alan Simpson

How much money do you need to be happy? by Chetan Maheshwari

I Refuse To Say Those Words Unless It Is Warranted by Ali

An Important Lesson I’ve Learned From My Editing Course by Erica Marie

This One Line From A 70’s Movie Helps Me Every Day by Andy Taylor

Across Medium

Have you read Thief’s poetry? Yes? Great! No? You’re in for a treat! Follow and subscribe for a regular dose of word-mastery in verse!

Aleid ter Weel suggests 20 things to do instead of scrolling through your phone. Love it!

Kristina God shares her top three Medium mistakes and tells you how to avoid them.

Nick Nolan talks about the one word you need in your headlines.

A lovely post by Donnette Anglin — truly the best gifts needn’t be those that are wrapped and meant for special occasions.

Prompts from our Coffee Times columnists

Know Thyself: Yana Bostongirl’s beautiful prompt is still live — look within and respond — free yourself! You can read some of the stories here:

Books: Here’s the latest prompt from Marrisa W. and it is all about books and characters that make you happy. Enjoy!

Travel: Sharing Randomly has a great idea and prompt for those itching to travel.

Inspiration: Here’s a glimpse into what you can expect from Vincent Van Patten

Until next week!

That wraps up this edition of the Coffee Times Weekly Roundup.

May I request you to please visit the featured posts, engage, comment, like, and clap generously! Community is everything! Thank you ❤

Question for you, my dear readers

Do you have any suggestions for the Coffee Times weekly roundup? Please share in the comments! Thank you.

With love from the Coffee Times Team

Winston, Dr. Preeti Singh, Yana Bostongirl, Drashti Shroff, Sharing Randomly, Marrisa W., Vincent Van Patten and yours truly, Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles

Be part of a supportive community of writers!

Join us as a writer on Coffee Times

Support Coffee Times

As you know, Coffee Times publication is not funded by Medium. We exist for the pure joy of supporting fellow writers and growing together. If you would like to support Coffee Times, do consider buying us a coffee here.

Follow Coffee Times on Medium, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Substack, and buymeacoffee.

Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles ❤ Did you smile today?

Help me support underprivileged children. Buy me a cup of coffee ☕ You can also use Ko-Fi. Thank you so much! Subscribe to my daily motivational tip posts on Substack

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