With the white beard and hair Santa may look old, but he doesn't seem to be getting any older. What are his secrets to longevity? How does the Jolly Old Elf keep up year to year? I managed to get Santa on the phone in a rare interview:
1. The "Ho-Ho-Ho" Secret
"My trademarked 'Ho-Ho-Ho' is more than just my natural expression of joy," began Santa. "It's my form of stress relief. Things can get quit hectic this time of year and the elves can be especially difficult about all the overtime. I find that laughter and smiling are the best ways to dissipate stress and lighten my mood. If I could bring one gift to all the grown ups this Christmas, it would be more smiles and laughter."
2. Mrs. Claus
"My next secret is Mrs. Claus," continued Santa. "She is the most wonderful wife and I couldn't do anything without her. She doesn't like the spotlight, but have to give her credit for making sure I take care of myself and keeping from obsessing too much over my work. Just being with her takes years off my life."
3. Chimney Squats
"You may not know it from my waistline, but I am quite fit. I have to train all year round to be strong enough to leap up through millions of chimneys on Christmas Eve," continued Santa. "I have a whole team of elves working with me everyday to exercise. They are always after me to leave the cookies behind, but I just love cookies so . . ." he said with a distant look in his eyes.
4. Managing Elves
"I can't begin to tell you how much I love working with elves. I think they are one of the reasons I stay so young," Santa explained. "When you have a thousand or so elves preparing millions and millions of gifts for the Big Day, you have to have some pretty good management skills. This keeps my mind working and engaged all year long." Santa recommends that anyone who want to stay sharp find ways to be creative and engage in daily problem solving and mental challenges.
5. Giving and Thinking Positive
"My final longevity secret: Think positive. I look forward to every year and the joys and challenges it brings. I just love my giving gifts and spreading joy during the Christmas season. It gives my life meaning and value. That, in my opinion, is the number one secret to longevity." With that, Santa gave a mighty "Ho-Ho-Ho" and excused himself to check on an assembly line.
拥有白胡须和白头发的圣诞老人也许看上去很老,但是似乎看不到他在变老。那么他的长寿秘诀是什么呢?年复一年这个“欢快的老精灵”是怎样的保持下去的?我和圣诞老人进行了一次成功的电话参访。
Santa Claus1.“HO-HO-HO”秘诀
圣诞老人开口就说:“我的标志性‘HO -HO-HO’笑声不仅仅是我喜悦的自然表现,也是我释放压力的方式。今年这个时候事情变得很艰难了并且和孩子们相处从来不是一件容易的事。我发现笑声和微笑是释放压力的最好方式并且使我的心情明亮起来。如果我能在这个圣诞我能给成年人带去什么礼物,那就是更多的微笑和笑声。”
Mrs. Claus2.圣诞老奶奶
“我的下一个秘诀就是圣诞老奶奶,”圣诞老人接着说。“她是最神奇的妻子,我离开她什么也不能做。她不喜欢聚光灯,但是必须对她为确保我照顾好自己和避免受太多工作的困扰所做得努力进行表扬。正是因为和她在一起,才使我更年轻了。”
Santa Going Down a Chimney3.蹲伏烟囱
“你可能从我的腰围看不出这一点,但是我非常适合做这件事。我不得不常年训练以保证我有足够的强壮能在圣诞前夕跳跃穿梭于无数个烟囱,”圣诞老人继续说。 “我有一群调皮的小孩陪我每天一起锻炼,他们总是在我不知道的情况下给我留下些饼干,但是我很喜欢这些饼干,因此······”他带着深邃的眼神说。
Elves4.管理“捣蛋鬼”
“我真不知道怎样告诉你我有多么的喜爱和孩子们一起工作。我认为这也是我保持年轻的原因,”圣诞老人解释说,“当你要为那么的“捣蛋鬼”准备上亿份礼物,你必须有非常好的管理技巧。这也让我的大脑一整年的在运转和忙碌中。”圣诞奉劝大家说如果想保持头脑精明,应该找一条有创造性方式且积极的参与解决日常难题和智力挑战。
Opening presents5.给予和积极的思想
“我最后的长寿秘诀是:积极的思想。我期待着每一年的到来,期待随之而来的换了也期待随之而来的挑战。在圣诞节期间我只爱送礼物和传递欢乐。因为是这些赐予了我生活的意义和价值。依我看来,这就是长寿的第一秘诀。”接着,圣诞老人发出了洪亮的“HO-HO-HO”的笑声,并借口说要去检查流水线就结束了采访。