If you follow X (Twitter) as I do, scrolling through hundreds of posts a few times a day, you can’t help but conclude that the political divide in both the U.S. and Canada, between Democrats and Republicans and between Liberals and Conservatives, has become wider and more extreme than it has ever been.

Distractions. I recall, decades ago, two high school lads riveted by the random outcomes of a surreptitious, they thought, game of cards, rather than attuned to my teaching of the Canada Food Guide. Message received — think about how I teach the Canada Food Guide.

Every once in a while, I have to try extra hard to look for the good things around me, especially lately.

I remind myself to poke my head outside of my echo chamber, and remember that even though the world seems to be on fire (literally and figuratively) there is still goodness and my soul needs to be nourished by it.

Sometimes, the brightest spot on my day is a jackpot — something like going on a vacation or finding a $5 bill in my pocket.

It’s the days that I easily make a connection with someone or have so much fun doing something that I forget about all the chaos around me.