Editor's letter 13 December 2020: My short-cut to happiness Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Sign in Welcome!Log into your account Forgot your password? Password recovery Recover your password Search Sign in Welcome! Log into your account Forgot your password? Get help Password recovery Recover your password A password will be e-mailed to you. YOU Magazine Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Home Life Editor’ s letter My short-cut to happiness By You Magazine - December 13, 2020 Earlier this week, I was in a particularly low mood. Nothing fatal, really, but just a bit of a pile-on of stresses on a Monday morning that had the cumulative effect of making me feel down. It’s horrible that feeling, isn’t it – the knot in your stomach that won’t go away, even when you try to reason with yourself that you have nothing serious to complain about. But we’ve all had those moments this year, right? Those hours (days?) of feeling stifled by a list of circumstances that are just out of our control. After a few hours of wallowing in this low-level hum of surly sadness, I had a flash of inspiration: I remembered that one thing I do when I really need cheering up. I go through all the old photos on my phone, looking for forgotten happy memories. I did a rapid-fire scroll through the past and let my finger settle on a random snap – like my own little private tombola. And I hit a jackpot the first time, finding a picture of me with two of my friends, Kathy and Miranda, from a dark November evening in 2017. We were at a friend’s house. It was a party. Instead of masks plastered to our faces there were smiles. The picture is a tangle of limbs and heads (including a rabbit’s, I kid you not) all boshed together in a tipsy, loved-up bear hug. I emailed it to both of them and said, ‘I’m having a rotten day so I’m looking through photos to cheer myself up. Remember this? Remember nights out? Remember hugs?’ Miranda replied: ‘Actually, it looks like you two are dragging me into your cult.’ Kathy: ‘What would the cult of Elvin involve?’ Miranda: ‘My cult would be the CULT OF NO SMALL TALK. Go bonkers or go deep.’ From there, the chat quickly descended into areas that, frankly, I’m not sure you’d want to read about with your Sunday-morning brew. But the point is, once I’d decided to change my mood, it was simple. I spent the rest of the day finding pictures I love of people I adore and sending them on. We laughed, we reminisced, we resolved to meet as soon as humanly possible. Before I knew it, the knot of despair was gone. Because, with a little help from my friends, I felt connected and loved and my heart was singing with happy memories. It made such a difference to my entire week that I wanted to tell you about it – next time you’re feeling down, do it. It’s like free happy pills. The other thing I do when I’m feeling down? Treat myself to joyful food. And what is more joyful than Christmas food created by the one and only Mary Berry? Our gorgeous cover star has pulled out all the stops to make it a wonderful Christmas to remember – yes, in spite of everything – with her recipes. I honestly think I might cook the whole menu for Christmas Day and then repeat it all for a random January dinner, too. There’s another little free happiness tip for you. Forget life’s made-up rules. You’re welcome. Now it’s your turn: what little things do you do to turn that frown upside down? I’d love to know. Enjoy the issue. Editor’ s picks A few things I’m coveting this week Jilly at her best. The perfect read to cosy up with. Book, £7.49, amazon.co.uk All proceeds go to this amazing charity. Jumper, £249, ladygardenfoundation.com Sparkles and comfort for Christmas Day. Jumpsuit, £89, hush-uk.com RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR Everything we know about The Crown season 5 Aldi s exercise equipment is on sale with up to 50% off The best Halloween events for 2022 across the UK Popular in Life The You magazine team reveal their New Year s resolutions December 31, 2021 Susannah Taylor The TLC tools your body will love January 23, 2022 How to stop living in fear February 6, 2022 Susannah Taylor My pick of the fittest leggings February 27, 2022 Women’ s Prize for Fiction 2022 winner announced June 17, 2022 These BBC dramas are returning for a second series June 30, 2022 Susannah Taylor gives the lowdown on nature s little helper – CBD April 17, 2022 The baby names that are banned across the world April 27, 2022 The Queen has released her own emojis May 26, 2022 Sally Brompton horoscopes 27th June-3rd July 2022 June 26, 2022 Popular CategoriesFood2704Life2496Fashion2240Beauty1738Celebrity1261Interiors684 Sign up for YOUMail Thanks for subscribing Please check your email to confirm (If you don't see the email, check the spam box) Fashion Beauty Celebrity Life Food Privacy & Cookies T&C Copyright 2022 - YOU Magazine. All Rights Reserved