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It is only those who are ready for anything, who exclude nothing who truly live in the fullness of their own being and of life itself. Rainer Maria Rilke
On behalf of the many friends who have supported me as I have wrestled with the creation of this ever-changing website, I welcome you. I trust you will find (and continue to find) the content enjoyable, informative, and maybe even challenging, as we try to explain the value of the social sciences in general, and (of late) philosophy in particular. And, without more ado, I invite you - as lovers of learning like us - to be ready for anything! Marian @ Krysan
PLANTING GOLDEN SEEDS
DR. FEELGOOD meets Alice is proving to be a popular page on the Krysan website. Here, Dr. Feelgood gently coaxes young Alice (in Sunderland) into an understanding of Positive Psychology, his persona based on a series of happiness articles in The Times Magazine way back in 2003. Alice needs no introduction. Equally popular, is a brand new page called THINK (!) - note the exclamation mark. This page is to honour an Open University course called Philosophy and the Human Situation - a course which is already making me think ... and hard. I predict that 'doing philosophy' will change the way I view the world and maybe radically so. Join me - this is an 'open' invitation, another first step. Look out, too, for another 'new kid on the block' in RESEARCH. Here, you will be introduced to the work of Miriam Akhtar from Bristol in England. Miriam is welcomed as a pioneering Positive Psychologist and a British expert in a new science. You may by now have guessed that Miriam Akhtar, along with the rest of Krysan's star-studded cast, is all about putting the 'YES' into your life ... and keeping it there! KRYSAN BLOG
Go to PUBLISHING and click on KRYSAN BLOG to see how the latest blog developed into ideas around big issues in society, first around a global economy in crisis, and then around the medicalisation of distress. The points of morality raised are not academic; they affect all of us in one way or another! Here's a statement guaranteed to rattle a few cages,
"It is a sobering moment in the history of humanity when we can see our own thoughtlessness, greed, and impatience writ large across the global sky." JIM WALLIS Rant over ... time for change ... last year, these blogs allowed a brief glimpse into the lives of 'extraordinary people' such as Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi. Likewise, blogging has given me the opportunity to extol 'the extraordinary healing power of ordinary things', inspired by a book by world-famous author Dr. Larry Dossey. They tell of the power to heal of optimism, laughter, music, voices, mystery and, even, dirt. Curious? Then, go to PUBLISHING and select ARCHIVES. Discover, too, some women working for good all of whom I met recently in the North East of England. Their stories are writ large (albeit briefly) in BEAUTIFUL MINDS. Permission to shine ...
LATEST NEWS
LATEST NEWS signposts the Happiness and Wellbeing Network in South Tyneside with dates of meetings open to all who happen their way. I'm also happy to be publicising the Healing Opportunities Provision Scheme (HOPS). This organisation operates out of the Quaker Meeting House in Roker, Sunderland, and helps people by providing complementary health services. Also to be found in LATEST NEWS is information on how to obtain historian Logan Ewing's book on the History of St. Nicholas Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne. This is a fascinating read and encapsulates the origins and history of the hospital from its opening in 1869 onwards. Another useful link in LATEST NEWS takes you to a couple of pages of newsprint about 'The Pathways to Wellbeing' from a Times supplement. These are highly recommended as a 'must read' for anyone interested in happiness and wellbeing - personally or professionally or both. Recently added is ready access to the NHS Online Mental Health Checker through USEFUL LINKS. This new NHS service is described as 'a sympton checker aimed at victims of the credit crunch, as well as people going through stressful periods in their life'. Just a thought ... PAMPHLETEERS
For another good read go to PUBLISHING and select PAMPHLETEERS. This feature arose out of a creative writing course sponsored by the BBCs Headroom Project to encourage mental wellbeing in the community. The current pamphlet is about the Power of Intuition with yet another article from Sunderland physician, Dr. Mohan Nabar, a passionate pamphleteer who writes straight from the heart. So, if it's opinions, news and views you are after from people who enjoy mulling over issues in society, the PAMPHLETEERS is the place to look. Past pamphlets (all eight) are to be found in the ARCHIVES. For those of you who enjoy a longer read, why not download back issues of REALITY NEWS from Cherry Knowle Hospital in Sunderland - archived safely here on this website lest they be lost forever. Alternatively, savour Krysan's own magazine, REALITY which is also to be found in PUBLISHING. You might like to know that the 2010 Winter edition of REALITY is now available. It's just a click away. PIT TALK ...
for Durham folk past, present and future Clicking on PUBLISHING and then PIT TALK will take you to some of the true stories (in COALMINING) and a huge collection of the in-jokes (in PIT TALK) that the miners of the Great Northern Coalfield told each other. They originated in the early twentieth century when Sir Charlie Chaplin strode the boards and are evidence that Chaplin's refreshingly childlike humour caught on (big time) in the pit villages of the North East of England. Both the miners' stories and this unique collection of jokes come to readers via the diligent research of the late Laurie Moran.
But, if it's the work of Durham artist Norman Cornish you're after, go to USEFUL LINKS for access to his new website. Norman has been capturing the North East in paint for almost eight decades and his wonderful collection of artwork is well worth a visit. He, like Laurie Moran, was a miner for most of his life. Finally, if you're homesick or heartsick or simply curious, click on the following link to take a 'Youtube tour' around Durham City. This is my home town ... Durham City 
Sanctuary Knocker, Durham Cathedral
THE HAPPINESS TRAINING PLAN CD (Practical Strategies for a Happier Life) by Dr. Chris Johnstone & Miriam Akhtar, MAPP 
For more information about this CD (and to buy) click on USEFUL LINKS and select 'HAPPINESS TRAINING PLAN' from the list.
R E A L I T Y
'STEPPING INTO THE SUNSHINE' Due 1 April 2010 
SELECTED QUOTES UNDERSTANDING VOICES. Half the power of a symptom is relieved by understanding its cause and how to avoid having it become worse ... What power and joy it was to feel relief and to have something with which to attack these terrible monsters of my soul. Marcia Lovejoy WORDS CREATE WORLDS. In language we build our own identities, our relationships with others, the countries that we live in, the companies we have, and the values that we hold dear. With language we generate life. Fernano Flores DEVELOPING AN 'APPRECIATIVE EYE'. Thus the task is not so much to see what no one yet has seen, but to think what nobody yet has thought about that which everybody sees. Schopenhauer
STORYTELLING
TELL SOMEONE A STORY Last week (and every week here at Krysan) was National Storytelling Week. The project was set up to increase public awareness of the art, practice and value of oral storytelling. The best Narrators realise that it is the telling of the story that really matters, not the accuracy of the account. They know how to bend, or should I say 'craft' the facts, in order to transform a mundane event into a delight to listen to. It's all about the way that they draw you in - eyes shining as they set the scene, holding you in suspense and then carefully leading you towards the impending outcome.
Whatever you may be doing today, why not tell someone a story? Could you captivate children's imagination by telling them a book-less fairy tale? Build a bond with colleagues by sharing a personal tale or two? Or pass along an anecdote that someone else passed on to you? Whatever you do, let's make every week a National Storytelling Week by practising your own skills as a Narrator...Marian
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