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SHARE THE LOVE!

Love has the power to shape us, our lives, our health and our happiness. With February being the Month of Love, we wanted to honour and celebrate the many ways love and specifically friendship shows up in our lives and the benefits these relationships bring to our well-being.  

EMBRACE LOVE 

Experts agree that we are a social species, and a sense of love and belonging are fundamental human needs. Research continues to acknowledge and expand on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. For example, in her book, ‘Why We Love, Dr. Anna Marchin further uses evidence from across various disciplines to explore and explain why love evolved, how we grab and hold on to it, and who we love. Based on her findings, she asks us to reconsider “…love not as an emotion but as a need as fundamental to us as the food we eat and the air we breathe.” Brené Brown also discusses belonging in her book Altas of the Heart and writes that “…love and belonging are irreducible needs for all people.” She too references new research that shows “finding a sense of belonging in close social relationships and with our community is essential to well-being.” The research is clear, we need love to thrive, so please reach out and embrace all the love in your life. 

Wayne & Carole on the 2022 Mystery Tour.

ENRICH YOUR LIFE WITH FRIENDS 

Love exists in our lives in many forms says Dr. Anna Marchin and may include parental love, romantic love, familial love, friendship, spiritual love, and even the love we share with our pets. All loves are important and not to be underestimated, but research shows that friendship, in particular, contributes greatly to our overall sense of well-being, life satisfaction and happiness. In fact, it appears that the more friends we have and the more meaningful those connections are, the happier we tend to be with our lives. Amati et al., found that a “rich social network” with “quality” friendship relationships is “positively associated to life satisfaction and well-being”. 

This positive association can be explained by some of the benefits meaningful relationships bring to our lives. According to the Mayo Clinic, Amati et al., and Amica Senior Lifestyles,  these benefits include, but are not limited to:  

  • Increased sense of belonging & purpose – Friends are important in affirming our sense of self, boosting our confidence, and helping us to feel connected and thereby satisfying the basic human need for belonging.
  • Increased connection, fun & adventure – Friends bring a sense of fun and can push us to experience new things. They can boost happiness, reduce stress and help keep us active and socially engaged.
  • Providing companionship – Friends bring companionship and can help us avoid isolation and loneliness (that has been linked to depression and other mental health challenges).
  • Increased emotional support – Friends help us through life’s traumatic, stressful, or challenging life events such as divorce, illness, death, and grief, painful and stressful challenges.
  • Improved physical health – Friends may help us live longer and according to Amica Senior Lifestyles reduce the “risk for long-term health problems such as obesity, high-blood pressure and heart disease.”
  • Encouraging us be our best selves – Friends can encourage healthier behaviour and lifestyle choices such as keeping active and eating well.
Peggy, Sylvia and Karen enjoying world famous Gelato in Italy.
Sharon and Pat enjoying afternoon glasses of wine on the
Ontario Waterways Cruise.
Enjoying the view at Peggy’s Cove.

CULTIVATE LOVE & FORGE LIFELONG FRIENDSHIPS

We’ve found travel to be a great way to experience something new and encourage you to embrace the opportunity of a shared experience to cultivate love, deepen existing relationships and forge lifelong friendships.

We hope we are your favourite travel company and that you will tell your friends about us too! That’s why we are rewarding you when you REFER A FRIEND. Introduce someone new to Wells Gray Tours, and if they book on a tour, you are both eligible for a discount. The discount will be based on the value of the tour you each have booked. Only one discount given per tour and per household.

It’s our way of saying “Thank you” for your recommendation.

Making memories to last a lifetime.

WE WANT TO SHARE THE LOVE!

We would love to read about your happy friendship memories travelling with us. If you would like to share, please email your stories to miranda@wellsgraytours.com by February 22, 2023. Your stories don’t have to be long—just a few lines or a paragraph will do!

Names for all those who contribute will be put into a draw for a $100.00 Wells Gray Tours travel voucher. All stories will be shared and the winner of the travel voucher announced in the March 2023 Newsletter.

Please share your friendship memories travelling with us.

Blog written by Miranda Schulz.

Photos: 

  • Wayne & Carole on the 2022 Mystery Tour taken by tour director Roland.
  • Peggy, Sylvia and Karen in Italy taken by tour director Lisa.
  • Sharon and Pat enjoying afternoon glasses of wine on the Ontario Waterways Cruise taken by tour director Roland.
  • Enjoying the view at Peggy’s Cove taken by tour director Jill.
  • Making memories photo from Adobe Stock
  • Share the love envelope and hearts from Adobe Stock.