Our lives are busy. Each day is filled with work to finish, errands to run and problems to solve. We’d all like to make it a little easier.
PeopleFinders.com enables you to find answers for many of life’s questions, and get the facts you need to make informed decisions. To start the New Year right, here are 11 ways PeopleFinders can improve your life in 2011:
It’s been a tumultuous year. Sometimes it seems like there is nothing but bad news everywhere you look. We’ve all faced so many difficult moments.
2010 also had plenty of highlights. We saw positive stories full of joy and hope. Inspiring tales that made us smile. Here are some of our favorite moments from the year.
November is the owner of an often-overlooked celebration known as Family Stories Month. It’s a simple thing, really. Just a time to reflect on the silly, funny, serious and sometimes terrifying stories that help define our family units.
Family Stories
These are the stories of us. They can make us laugh, cry and experience every emotion in between. Sometimes all at once. That’s because these stories helped make us what we are today.
Every family has thousands of stories. Some are epic tales that changed lives. Others are small anecdotes that bring us happy memories of someone, or some moment in time. But they are all important. And they are all worth sharing.
We all have so many things that we should be grateful for every day. Unfortunately, our schedules can get so hectic that most of us don’t have time to stop and think about the moments that make us smile. That’s why we’re grateful for World Gratitude Day.
Origin
In 1965, a group of dignitaries from several nations enjoyed a Thanksgiving dinner together in Hawaii. They discussed the concept of setting aside one day each year for people to focus on things that they are grateful for. Every attendee agreed to take this idea back to their home country. From that moment on, September 21 would become an internationally celebrated event.
Families have many wonderful attributes. One of our favorites is the fact that a family can be extended at any time. New people can be added to your biological or extended family throughout your life. The largest and fastest growth spurts often come from the addition of a stepparent.
Family life can be a little difficult when a stepmother or stepfather is added. Children may resent the “new” person, and feel they are trying to replace a birth parent. Adults might have a completely different parenting style than what the family is used to, which can lead to misunderstandings and conflict.
Some experts suggest that it takes a minimum of four years for most stepparents to develop positive relationships with their stepchildren. There are no easy solutions that work for everyone.
As Assistant Head Nurse at Calvary Hospital in New York, Wanda Rodriguez meets thousands of people. One recent patient stands out above the rest. On August 25, 2010, Victor Peraza was admitted into Calvary. Victor is Wanda’s long-lost father.
41 years had passed since Wanda last saw her dad. She was only an infant at the time. Wanda and her sister Gina were raised by their mother, and they always wondered about the man who gave them birth.
Family is defined in many ways. It begins with the people who share your name and ancestry. As you get older, your family continues to grow.
People marry and inherit a second family. Relatives give birth to nieces, nephews, cousins and grandchildren. Close friends and confidants are invited into the special group of people you call your family, even though they aren’t related by birth. A family is made up of people who share a special bond; it does not need to obey any boundaries.
A recent study conducted by the University of Arizona and Washington University in St. Louis showed that people who spend more time talking tend to be happier. The study concluded that happy people have more substantial conversations, not just small talk.
Researchers listened in on volunteers over a four-day period and recorded snippets of conversations. The recordings were categorized as either small talk or substantive exchanges, and people who regularly engaged in more serious chats with family and friends were the happiest.
Now and then an event is so powerful that every detail becomes permanently etched into the minds of the people who experienced it, and every generation to come will be told the story. One such moment began on the quiet morning of September 11, 2001.
People across the United States woke up that morning and heard the terrifying news about commercial airliners being hijacked. Four planes were taken over by Al-Qaeda terrorists: American Airlines Flight 11, United Airlines Flight 175, American Airlines Flight 77 and United Airlines Flight 93. Although no one knew the hijackers’ demands, it wouldn’t be long until the devastating truth behind their mission was revealed.
On the first Monday in September people all across the United States enjoy a little extra time away from their jobs as we celebrate Labor Day. It’s a great holiday to share with friends and family as we start to say farewell to the summer.
The origin of Labor Day goes back to the time of the American Industrial Revolution. It was first celebrated in New York City on September 5th, 1882 by members of the Central Labor Union. Workers took a day off to have a picnic and enjoy the fruits of their labors. They agreed to make this an annual event, and the following year the concept began to spread around the country. By 1894 it had gained so much attention that it was turned into a national holiday.
