April is a month dedicated to keeping yourself and our nation in top shape. It is both Stress Awareness Month and Keep America Beautiful Month.

Spring is a very stressful time of year for so many families. If you have children, myriad sporting activities and school projects keep you bustling more than ever after long days in the office. And with Tax Day punctuating the middle of the month, the incessantly insistent cries of the tax man strain your peace of mind as much as your checkbook. It is the perfect time of year to ensure we’re all aware of the best methods for managing stress and alleviating anxiety.

Who has the time or money to meditate daily, practice yoga or get weekly massages? These seem impractical during a time of year when time and money are the reasons we have so much stress. What we do have time and money for, however, is eating. So it’s the best place to start.

Nobody has the inclination to revamp their diet, so our simple goal must be to incorporate more foods that produce serotonin — a calming chemical — and reduce levels of cortisol and adrenaline, stress hormones that, according to Web MD, take a great toll on the body. Good choices include whole-grain breakfast cereals, breads and pastas, as well as old-fashioned oatmeal. If you’re a late night snacker, carbs at bedtime speed the release of serotonin and help you sleep better; so indulging in a little toast and jam is a great idea to help awaken fresh and energized.

Embracing the many virtues of April will also help control your stress this month.

If you missed National No Housework Day on April 7, reschedule it — perhaps weekly. As the weather continues to warm, celebrate snowless roads by taking a quick stroll around the block while dinner cooks and the children finish homework. Exercise produces a host of endorphins that counter stress, re-energize you, and provide newfound confidence to conquer the little things that would otherwise overwhelm you.

With Pet Owner’s Day on April 18, it is a wonderful opportunity to start a walking regimen with your pet and friends. Or if you’re more of an indoors person, pick up that pen and begin writing. Write fiction stories, poems or future goals. Writing enhances creativity, which can assist with other projects stressing you out, and can be immensely therapeutic — when you’re not under a deadline!

In fact, April 10 is Encourage a Young Writer Day. So help introduce the personal and professional advantages of writing to those in your life by sitting down with them and writing together.

With April’s bounty of holidays, there is no shortage of ways to combat stress. Taking care of ourselves, however, is not the only goal of the month. As we reflect on the benefits of self-improvement to better our quality of living, we must also remember how important our surroundings can be to our health and happiness. To help us do this, April has been declared Keep America Beautiful Month.

How littered are the streets of your neighborhood or the ditches of your highway? There is a real sense of satisfaction derived from cleaning up your community and research has shown that pride in your environment directly translates into pride and success in your professional work. Who knew the fastest way to a raise could be through picking up that gum wrapper?

As the month ends, April 22 is Earth Day and April 30 is Arbor Day. Both are prime opportunities for us to improve the beauty of our nation by embracing self-interest and beautifying our own yards. Yes, these two holidays only further corroborate the great economic theories of Adam Smith — the interests of the collective can be advanced by the driving interests of the individual. If many tend to their yards, raking old grass, leaves and twigs, planting new flora and pruning the existing foliage, it will not take long before America’s communities again exude the vibrant greens, reds and whites of springtime. America the beautiful indeed.

With litter-free highways, debris-free sidewalks and stress-free lives there can be little doubt that our nation’s pride and confidence will return to full in the face of this ending recession. From our awareness in April, let success and happiness follow us all the days of our lives.

Davis is a local resident who holds a bachelor’s degree in politics and government and religion from Ripon College, and a master’s degree in international affairs, national security and intelligence from the Bush School of Government and Public Service.  Contact him at execdirector@paxamerica.org.