Can we ever really ‘get it right’ in our lives?

September 28, 2023 · 0 Comments

After all these years, I still don’t know if I’ve gotten it right. I shed tears instead of burdens. Behind my smiles and smirks are other things, dark things, nagging things. Last week I received some positive news about my health, but surprisingly, I didn’t know what to do with that information. Should I celebrate? Should I be relieved? I almost felt lost, without such a burden hanging over me. Now what do I do?

Let’s spread the concept of long-living ‘blue zones’

The key to longevity, according to Carl Reiner, is to interact with other people. Turns out he was right. And comedian George Burns, who made it to 100, once said the key to longevity is avoiding stress, worry and tension. Turns out he was right, too.

Make sure you find the purpose in your work!

t’s been said the reward for a job well done is that you get to do even more! When you’re surrounded by people who share a passionate commitment around a common purpose, anything is possible, according to Howard Schultz. He also said that if you don’t love what you’re doing with unbridled passion and enthusiasm, you’re not going to succeed when you hit obstacles.

Home ownership requires a certain handiness

t’s been said that if your man isn’t handsome, he better be handy! Our species has succeeded and evolved, largely because we have hands, fingers and a decent-sized brain. We can conceptualize, design, build and create. It remains our strength over our fellow mammals on this planet. Imagine if our simian cousins could build structures and tools? That’s definitely a new Planet of the Apes movie to be sure.

A cancer journey changes you forever

It’s been said when you experience two things – love and grief – it changes you and you are never the same. I would add cancer to that list. Cancer changes you forever, mentally and physically. It’s like you’re constantly running away from danger and always looking over your shoulder for something that could harm you.

Pondering the smells of summer time

I love summer and if I had it my way, it would be sunshine and BBQ all year long. Ok, the heat we’ve experienced this summer is a bit much (record breaking in many ways). I still enjoy soaking up the rays, and feeling the warmth on my face. It’s like being touched by angels, or something similarly heavenly. We haven’t been away as a family in some time, and now that our kids are young adults, they seem to have their own ideas of “fun.”

Is mankind in jeopardy of extinction?

As we tiny human beings scurry to clean up the mess we’ve made, we need to look at the bigger picture. We’ve known, for decades, that our use of fossil fuels, pollution, waste, litter and over-fishing has taxed our poor, little globe. It’s all we have and yet we haven’t treated it very well since the industrial revolution.

Perception of time varies among creatures

Most of us know that “time keeps on slippin,’ slippin,’ slipping’ into the future,” but its speed depends entirely what you are. We humans have a pretty good grasp on the passage of time, too good, in fact. We measure our hours, minutes, days, months and years by our orbit around the sun. Our concept of time only applies here on earth and no where else in the universe do our minutes apply.

Humans have the itch to travel and explore

Theo was spot on with many of his tidbits that he shared with generations of readers. “We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment,” read a mural at Hamilton International Airport. I saw the quote when I picked up my eldest from a short trip to Alberta to visit her cousin. Lexie is the world traveller of our family and “oh the things she has seen.” She’s been to Europe, New York and LA. She did humanitarian work in Rwanda and Kenya. She’s done work in Guatemala and spent time in a small fishing village.

Laughter saved the human species!

“Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.” Victor Borge didn’t know how right he was when he said that. Charles Dickens noted that nothing in the world is so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humour. This truly human quality, one we take for granted, is likely responsible for us being at the top of the food chain.

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