|| 2 July 2017

French Sang-Froid

About the photo above: One of my goals for my June “vacation” was learning features of my new camera. Since my daylilies were in bloom and conveniently located just beyond my back patio, they became a frequent photo subject as I learned various buttons and dials. You see a composite of my two daylily beds and a closeup of two blossoms above.

The chief reason for my month vacation was to reduce my stress level driven up by the myriad chores that needed to be done. Stress, and how a little sang-froid can keep stress levels down — and how it can help keep you slim — are the topics today.

Sang-froid. Composure or coolness, sometimes excessive, as shown in danger or under trying circumstances. The French are known for their sang-froid. Lately they have been giving noticeable demonstrations of that trait.

Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan was in Paris when, on 19 June 2017, the driver of a car containing guns and explosives rammed the car into a police vehicle on the Champs-Élysées.

Peggy Noonan’s column about the public reaction in Paris to this terrorist attack is a wonderful description of French sang-froid.

The more that medical research establishes a direct link between stress and excess weight, the more evident it becomes that being able to remain calm and go about one’s life in a normal manner — even under potentially stressful circumstances — is a strong aid to staying slim.

The Wall Street Journal limits access to its articles. But the week following their appearance in the Journal, Peggy Noonan’s weekly WSJ column is posted on her website. The description of Paris during and after the attack is in the second section of the two-part article linked below. Scroll down past the section break indicated by the three asterisks to the paragraph “I was traveling this week for work, in Europe.”

Peggy Noonan on French sang-froid

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