The Glad Game

This week we watched Pollyanna (1960); my second time watching the film and my husband’s first. There are some very powerful moments in the middle and at the end of the film, but my favorite part is the Glad Game. Pollyanna is a book written by Eleanor H. Porter and it was later adapted into a Disney classic. It follows the story of an orphaned little girl named Pollyanna who moves in with her wealthy aunt Polly after losing both of her parents. Her presence really shakes up the household and transforms the whole town. I won’t share my other favorite parts of the movie because I believe this is one you should see for yourself.

Pollyanna has had a lot of difficult experiences, but she often tells people why she is glad. She calls this “The Glad Game,” a game her father invented for them to practice gratitude. It started when her father wrote a charity asking for them to send a little secondhand doll to his daughter who had never had one. Instead, there was a mix-up and she was sent a pair of crutches. Her father told her that there is always something to be glad about, and in this case it was that she was healthy enough not to need the crutches. From then on, when something gets Pollyanna down she thinks of reasons to be glad instead.

Many people have mocked Pollyanna’s positive attitude and modern critics call her game toxic positivity, but I have to disagree. Terrible things have happened to Pollyanna. She does not deny this or pretend that things are great. Instead, she focuses on things she is grateful for. Pollyanna cannot change the past or take away the bad, but she does have the power over her own mindset. Toxic positivity is when someone pretends that things are great when they are not, or shames others for negative feelings. Pollyanna does neither. Her “glad game” is really a gratitude game and gratitude is a powerful tool for wellbeing.

So the next time something does not go your way, can you think of something to be glad about?

For example, I am unhappy that my photography business, which was right at full-time at the start of 2020 is still stuck in part-time work. Instead of feeling sorry for myself I can be glad that I have a few weddings booked this year as well as an upcoming engagement and boudoir session I have to look forward to. I am glad that one of the few weddings I have this year is a destination wedding. I am also glad that the first time in years I have many free summer and autumn weekends to spend time with friends, family, and doing what I love. Of course, I would love to book more weddings. But I am also glad for the extra time. There is a lot to be grateful for, even through the bad.

The next time you start feeling blue, try thinking of three things your are grateful for.