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Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Reading and Hygge-ing

The Danish concept of hygge is the big new wellness trend.  Oxford Dictionaries even shortlisted hygge as one of their Words of the Year 2016.

Hygge (pronounced hue-gah) is a Danish word that translates roughly to “cosiness” although several other words are often used to describe the idea of hygge:  charm, happiness, contentment, security, familiarity, comfort, reassurance, kinship, and simplicity.

Hygge describes a feeling or mood that comes from taking genuine pleasure in making ordinary, everyday moments more meaningful, beautiful or special.  In essence, hygge means creating a warm atmosphere and enjoying the good things in life with good people.

The Danish tourism site describes hygge as “more than a cosy room full of candles, company and good food.  Hygge is a philosophy; a way of life that has helped Danes understand the importance of simplicity, time to unwind and slowing down the pace of life.  So hygge may have started [in Denmark], but you can definitely start practising it at home!  Create space and time to do nothing but enjoy the little things with family and friends and you're on your way to a hyggelig home!” (http://www.visitdenmark.com/hygge)

BookRiot recently featured an article entitled “How to Hygge Your Reading Life” which offers 10 suggestions for adding coziness to your reading (http://bookriot.com/2016/12/16/how-to-hygge-your-reading-life/).  It’s an interesting short read, but I agree with the writer that readers tend to “intuitively grasp the appeal of getting cozy while settling down with a good book.”

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