Go to the Water

As everyone is aware, I was blessed with a very long career in nursing. My most cherished time was when I was on the Palliative ward. I always felt like a better person when I spent time with people that were dying, they brought out the best in me. Simply put, I learned so much about living from the dying. Every day that I worked with the palliative patients I felt like I was a student in life. It was an honor to be part of such a vulnerable time for these families. By no means am I an expert in the field of grief. Sadly, dealing with grief is a continuous process, one we are never free from, especially as we age. Something that I learned, and I believe is true to overcome grief, is that you have to go through it, you can't go around it.    Grief comes in an assortment of ways, the most common is from the loss of a loved one. There are other events in our lives that that we grieve such as, loss of a relationship, loss of a home through fire or flood, loss of pets, loss of a sp...

I can't help it; I have become obsessed with Jelly Roll. Ever since I saw him perform at the Invictus Games I can't get enough of his music, his interviews and whatever else he is doing. I love his music, therapy music as he calls it. I think it is admirable how he turned his life around after being incarcerated at 15 years old. I just watched him mentor the contestants on American Idol. He was so invested and encouraging to each person that sang, singing every word with them from his seat. It is no surprise that the headlines are saying, "Jelly Roll is always happy". I am not the type of person to get star struck, but I believe I am. I just love a comeback story, and Jelly's is one of the best. He never forgets where he came from and is extremely generous by giving back. When he smiles, I smile back. When he laughs, I laugh with him, he has a wild way of talking and I love it. I sing along with his songs. It is sheer craziness; he makes me happy.  Jelly has lost ...

A "perspective" is the way of thinking about or viewing something often influenced by one's experiences or beliefs.  During my time with my cousin, we visited the Observatory. The building and the telescope are over 100 years old. The building is open to the public a few days during the month. The tours and information are provided by the University students; I assume they are taking Astrology. There are some factors to consider when you are looking at the sky. Of course, the obvious is how clear it is. We just came out of a very cold winter and that is also a factor since the roof is wide open. We were certainly lucky to hit a nice clear night.     Going to the Observatory was popular the night we went with lots of families coming and going. The tour began by crawling the ancient stairs to the roof. It took two people and a ladder to get the roof open, and the telescope set. Once the guide had everything in place, we started to take turns looking at the small specks...

Easter is a holiday that is steeped with tradition and reflection. It holds a different meaning for each of us. Every Easter I reflect on how it was when I was a kid, way back in the dark ages, and how everything has changed so much. For many families it is a time to come together to celebrate the traditions that are meaningful to them.  Easter is a sacred time for Christians as they celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ . Easter is known as a  time for rebirth, hope and new beginnings.                                      I doubt anyone has a family memory that can trump the "Dixon Family Egg Hunt". My Dad was one of 10 children in his family. They were never all at home at the same time, but there were probably at least 6 or 7 kids on the egg hunt each year. Their dear mother would dye 14 dozen eggs with no food coloring. All I know is beets make red eggs. Dad would speak of h...

I have to start by saying, I don't believe in road rage and criticizing how someone else drives is something I try to avoid. But there is one thing that brings out the worst in me. It is when someone ahead of me is turning a corner at 5 kms or slower. I know they are turning, not because they have their signal light on, heaven forbid they use that little apparatus. I know because for half a block they have been slowing down from their previous speed of 30 km in preparation to turn the corner. Absolutely oblivious to the effect they have just had on the flow of traffic. For some reason turning a corner in a timely fashion is important to me. It was while I waited for said person to turn the corner that I thought, I should write about the meaning of "turning a corner".    We have all heard the phrase, "turning the corner". It is used to indicate a significant positive change or improvement, especially after a period of difficulty or struggle. It can be used in a v...

I have wanted to "do something" for the homeless for some time, but I knew I lacked the knowledge and quite frankly the courage to do it. When I was planning a visit to see my cousin, I asked if we could give sandwiches and cookies to the homeless in her city. She had done this before and in my way of thinking, she was an expert. My cousin has as friend who at one time lived on the street. She has since turned her life around and was our guiding force in our sandwich project. Her suggestion was to make their favorite p eanut butter and jam on white bread. She advised us to dress casually and not to wear red as it is gang related.   On Sunday just before lunch, we made 40 sandwiches and added 2 cookies to each bag. We then headed to the back of the Safe Consumption Site, where there were several people. I got out and before my cousin could get around to my side of the truck, a lady asked us what we wanted. Once we announced, "we have sandwiches", they started to appr...

Welcome to the "250th" post that I have published  since I started my blog on September 12, 2022. At that time, I thought blogging would be time limited because I would run out of things to write about. I was totally unaware of how one thing leads to another and here we are at 250.  Blogging, or writing as I refer to it, has opened up my world. I find I am listening and watching people so much more than I ever used to. All the phrases I write about have come from a conversation with others. Every topic is inspired by something I've heard or seen. People are amazing and what they have taught me is profound. I am somewhat surprised at how passionate I have become about some topics. I think it is because I am now making a point of educating myself on those topics, and I have expanded my knowledge. It is important in retirement to keep on learning.  I have a process when I blog. I will hear a phrase or have an experience, and I think, "I should write about that". I ...

Since I retired, I often find myself involved in a conversation about retirement. Those conversations often lead to another topic, finding a purpose in life. Most people feel they need to find their purpose before they can retire. Some struggle with that and I wonder if their decision would be easier if they asked themselves, "where am I the happiest?".    I have several friends that say, "I'm in my happy place when I am in my garden or flower bed". They lose all track of time as they are transformed into a place of serenity. They are lost in their own world as they nurture their flowers and plants. I think this is probably the same for farmers. They can't wait to get going on the land in the spring. I think their happy place is in the tractor bringing the soil alive.   I recently asked a friend where she was the happiest. She said she is the happiest when she is doing volunteer work and helping others. I have to admit I am the same. It is not just the volun...

As I am closing in on 70, I often think, "how on earth did I get to be this old, so quickly?". Decades pass, just like years used to. I now have a better understanding and an appreciation for "how good some people are for their age".  It seems once a senior starts to crowd 80, you will hear them say, "Well, I'm almost 80 or 85 or 90", whatever the number may be. They like people to know their age, it is like a disclaimer for what they have just said or done. A common question is, "how old do you think I am?". Seniors should be proud of their age, only 2.3% of Canada's population is 85 years or older.   I have been blessed to have several 90-year-olds in my life. I come from a long line of longevity. My grandmas were 96 and 98 when they passed away. Many of their children lived well into their 90s. Mom turned 90 last September and it suits her very nicely. Of course, during my very long career, many inspirational 90-year-olds have crossed ...