I’m 75 years old today! It’s a milestone birthday. Last week, my sister-in-law sent a large box containing several albums of pictures of my family. I looked at many photos of my mother taken in her 70s and 80s. She smiled in almost every photo. What’s more, she looked radiant, vibrant, and engaged with […]
Fun stuff
My Grandchildren Taught Life Lessons at the Beach
Last week my grandchildren, aged 2 and ½ and 7 years old, were at the cottage with our son. During COVID, they are in our ‘bubble’ of 10 people. Our daughter-in-law is also in the bubble but she was working from home and taking a break from two noisy active children. At breakfast every morning […]
After COVID -19 — We’ll Eat at the Big Table
I was touched when our 7 year-old-granddaughter told me during a short talk last week, “I can’t wait to come and eat at your big table”. She knew this would not occur until the threat of COVID-19 passed. We were having a social-distancing visit with our family who stood on the walkway as they brought […]
December Holiday Anticipation
Yesterday when I picked up our granddaughter for our weekly ‘date’ after school, she was full of anticipation for Christmas. ‘It’s too early’ I said. She disagreed and then told me that one of Santa’s elves had visited their house the night before and wrapped the living room pictures in Christmas paper with big red […]
Nurture your inner child with playtime
Each of us has an inner child that’s waiting for a tweak to come out for some playtime. Yes, play — as in doing silly things, running, jumping, telling jokes, laughing, and having fun. As adults, especially as older adults, we often forget about play. Play is for kids! But what about the kid in […]
Pi Day — will you bake a Pie?
Will you bake a pie on March 14 to celebrate Pi Day? Or will you celebrate with some calculation using the symbol π, which is the Greek letter for Pi? Until about one week ago I knew nothing about Pi Day which has been celebrated internationally since 1988. In 2009 the United States House of […]
Valentine’s Day and Moments of Joy
There are many opportunities for small moments of joy on Valentine’s day. You don’t need to wait for someone to shower you with gifts of love. Cards, candy and flowers always bring joy, but receiving such gifts depends on other people who may forget or choose the wrong things. Why not look for moments of joy to […]
The weather — Why do we keep talking about it?
No matter where I go, I hear people talking about the weather. When I get to the gym in the morning, someone inevitably remarks about the weather. When my husband comes in from his daily errands, he mentions the weather. When travelling by plane, the pilot usually announces the weather forecast at the destination and gives […]
Soul Destroying Effects of Social Media
While driving to the gym one morning last week I listened to a CBC interview with a tech expert from the UK who advocated getting off social media. The interviewer noted that social media has been characterized as ‘soul destroying’. Jaren Lanier is a scientist at Microsoft. His book, Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media […]
Summer Cottage Rituals
This summer marks 34 years of cottaging at Lake Huron in the small town of Grand Bend. During these 34 years, we’ve developed many cottage rituals and habits. There are rituals for every season of the year, but the summer cottage rituals have special meaning. Summer is the season when we spend most of our […]