LIFE LONG LEARNING- RETIREMENT HELPS

Challenging one's mind with new ideas and concepts takes time and effort. I have learned in retirement that I have more time for research and yes good old fashioned reading.

Reading everything from books, to magazines, to newspapers to Internet articles and social media.

You Tube has many interesting documentaries that are easy to find.

So life long learning can take on many directions and fun.

Short day adventures to photograph what I see.
So how is your life long learning coming along?
#lifelonglearning#retirementgivestimetolearn#ideasandconceptsonlearning#reflectivethoughtsbybarbara#barbaradimambro#usingalltheresourcesathand#readeverythingyoucan

AND THE GILLER PRIZE WINNER IS....

The Canadian book writers, the publishers and the reading public. Being on the shortlist is huge for all the authors. As a  Canadian reader, I have bought the short wait list books for the last several years. Honestly I try to read them all throughout the year. Sometimes they become my summer reading. Buying and promoting Canadian books one purchase at a time is good for the authors and the country.
Oh yeah, the winner this year is Michael Redhill- Bellevue Square. Try to check it out and the other books.
#gillerprize#mindsofwinter#intransit#IamaTruck#shortlist#reading#Canadian#Bellevuesquare#sonofatrickster#publishers

SCHOOL'S OUT LET THE SUMMER BEGIN

What can be said about the real summer months beginning? Time to embrace the lazy, hazy days of summer. Change gears. Go to a local beach! Canadians spend lots of money going south to lay on the beach and get a tan so with less expense the same feeling can be had. Road trips planned! Vacations to Europe or other exotic places will have airports filled with travellers over the weekend. Pearson Airport is expecting its biggest crowds over this July 1 weekend. I perused my bookshelf discovering that I have a nice pile of books to try to read over the summer. Reading makes one sit and enjoy the day. Even a couple of hours reading each day brings an incredible amount of relaxation. My favourite spot on the back porch with my birdies and squirrels as companions. Summer brings so many childhood memories too. Camping in Algonquin Park. Days at the cottage on Lake Scugog. My first job delivering the Toronto Star with a friend earning a little money. Sometimes even a tip from a nice customer. Some sporadic vacations days here and there as I have discovered just taking one week then no other days off is a bummer. So making several long weekends with 4 day work weeks. Having some company so rooms are ready! Of course, how to spend time with the grandkiddies in a leisurely way. Organizing, writing, editing in a leisurely way too is on my agenda. Again in my little spot on my back porch. Having a little basket of stuff that is handy. Stopping to smell the roses in my garden. Oh yeah that need some pruning too. Summer with all its expectations! What are your plans? Or are you just going to let the good times roll and see where you head?

NANA SAYS BOOKS ARE STILL GREAT FOR CHILDREN

With the invention of the printing press, the masses had access to books. For children even in this technological age with computer interactive games, the book is still a wonderful treasure not only for a child but youth and adults. I know there are e-books that many people love. Talking books can be great on long road trips. Sitting with a book and reading to a young child is still a beloved way to connect to the written word as well as have an emotional moment together. Going to the library and selecting some books can be a social activity. With events for young children, it can be a warm engaging place to be. On my grandchildren's Christmas lists there are several book suggestions. My granddaughter loves to make her own books with some paper, folding and stapling-she creates a subject and has her own content. Bedtime comes with story time for young children. Often, older children are left reading before they fall asleep. Many adults, of course, read a page or two before dozing off to sleep! Big books, little books, picture books, dictionaries, thesaurus and even the atlas are a must for any home. Encouraging children to look up a word in a dictionary is still a way to enrich one's language skills. Donating books to day cares, libraries or communities needing books is a way to wean one's shelves of read books. Children can carry the books in their arms or read on a long car trip. So with all the other tools used in our modern age, keep books front and center. Be a role model to children in your lives. Seeing, touching and reading books regularly becomes part of a family's life. Adults have book clubs. So perhaps a family book discussion could be something to include in a daily activity. On those drives to those copious lessons that are so time consuming, being interested in what your child is reading may be fodder for a conversation. Of course for the bored parent waiting for those lessons to finish, it may be an opportunity to read your own book! Any thoughts?

THE IDES OF FEBRUARY

Here we are at the 15th of the month. It seems halfway but actually with February it is past that mark. With Valentine's Day with all the flowers and chocolates over, there is little excitement about the days ahead. Perhaps that is the reason for so much depression this time of year.To find activities and fun can help keep the spirits going. Although the sun is returning to us with longer days, is it the darkness that brings darkness to our lives? Winter driving and commutes are longer which leaves less time at night to do those much needed chores. Times we are just tired, right? So are there things that you can do with less energy and effort? Reading? A game with the children? Organizing a drawer- each night do one? Sometimes just getting started with something small. Work can be strenuous with more sick calls from colleagues. Sometimes more mental health days than actual sick days so covering for those away brings stress. Oh the ides of February! The month in the middle of winter so it seems but actually much closer to Spring than realized. Get out and walk in the snow! Get back to a winter activity! Make a snowman with a child or a snow angel! Pretend you really like it and before you know it, a new season will arrive! Or you can still go to bed and pull the covers over your head and hope it all goes away!

2013 IN WITH THE NEW

Each January 1 brings hope of a good and successful New Year! Looking forward rather than looking backward! A new calendar on the desk or the wall with a total clean slate for the year ahead! Putting away Christmas items cleans up the house. Returning to those unfinished projects and picking up those books to read during the winter months. The days are really starting to get longer again as the Sun  returns to us. For me there is not much new but renew! No resolutions- just continue with my goals! Write! Photograph! Exercise! Healthy eating! Read! Craft! Knit! Crochet! Sew! Play! Love! Connect! Travel! Explore! And yes- work- at home and work! What about you? Any resolutions? Or just continue as is? Are you finding new activities or renewing?

NANA SAYS OUTDOOR PLAY IS GOOD FOR CHILDREN

With the warmer weather here, the outdoors becomes a great playground. A fenced in yard can keep children safe. Depending on the day- bug spray, sunscreen , a good hat and we are now advised to use sunglasses for not only adults but children of all ages. My yard is paths and gardens so teaching the little to leave the dirt in the garden and the stones on the path is a constant struggle. We are creating a little area under one of the trees so it can become " a fort"! Cheap plastic toys, a wagon and somewhere to sit makes for fun! My yard is full of rocks that the children like to climb and sit on! If you do not have a yard, there are many parks with lots of equipment or just go to the grassy area for some creative play. Make a picnic! Low tech! Old imagination! Listen to the birds- identify them. Teach about the trees! Pick up pinecones- then try to find uses for them! Nature becomes a lesson in constant progress! Walks, jogging and long bike rides work for older children and teenagers! If you are a lucky one with a cottage, learning the rules of the water- swimming, boating- learning to canoe or row a boat, and whatever the area brings in terms of wildlife and vegetation! Every adult becomes a teacher! Of course reading a book outside or doing a craft with natural products becomes fun. What do you have in your yard? Can an area become a castle for a princess and prince? Can a section of your garden become the little one's spot for flowers or vegetables? Get a bird book and a natural atlas for your area! Have fun looking up new any unknown "thing" with the family! Even if teenagers appear to be totally uninterested, keep at it anyway! They continue to learn through osmosis! As we spend more time outdoors with the children in our lives, it can have a great benefit on us! I find the screaming, and sometimes fighting that occurs with my grandchildren is less annoying as the sound evaporates into the air! Of course, helps with naps and sleeps as the play and air does tend to tire children. Tires adults as well! Oh the great outdoors- just love it!

THE BEST BOOK ON GRIEF

I wrote in a previous post about C.S. Lewis who wrote A Grief Observed. It is one of the best books on grieving that I have read and used in my practice. Recently I bought a bunch to give to significant people in my life who unfortunately are in the midst of grief. His beautiful little book begins- " No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear. I am not afraid, but the sensation is like being afraid." His book is his personal experience of grieving and missing his wife. It is usually quoted in all the modern texts on grief and loss. Reading a book will not resolve all your issues of grief. However, in the middle of the night when you really do not want to talk about how you feel, reading and processing another's thoughts who had the painful journey can bring solace! Knowing we are lonely but not alone in our bereavement journey as others before us have travelled the road let's us know it is okay to feel the pain in the depths of our souls! Lewis was known for The Narnia Chronicles but he was also a theologian with a deep faith. Grief makes us question many parts of our life and our place in the cosmos. He questioned and questioned. Does it let us also question? You bet. There are usually no definitive answers but the questioning and seeking answers can become the journey. Have you read this beautiful little book? It is available I am sure at your local library. I hope the people in my life will find it useful.

NANA SAYS KEEP CHILD'S PLAY SIMPLE

Each generation of parents wants their children to be brighter than the one previously and larger than life. Are computer skills at two years old really necessary? Exposing children to books, crafts, creative opportunities are the fodder for learning. Toys with bells and whistles are good too but not the only things to be available.While playing in the snow with one of my grandsons recently, I followed his lead. He likes to dig and play with his roller- his wheelbarrow. It is his machine. He was transporting the snow from one place to another. We were engaging in imaginative play. The tools- shovel, plastic wheelbarrow and snow. We were labelling, counting and using the materials at hand. Hum! Skills that could help with a lifetime? Later he wanted to play with a ball of my wool. He took it around the house- made tunnels and walls. Even Nana was on her knees crawling under his tunnel in play! Simple play. There is always the old joke- the child likes the box a toy comes in better than the toy itself. By talking with childen- language development; grammar; math- how many cookies on your plate?; science- look at the squirrel eating-where do you think he lives or observing the night sky watching the changing of the moon;  listening to music and reading from favourite books- are skills readily available to any parent rich or poor. Playing with children allows the opportunity to develop a relationship as well a teaching moment. All those little moments really are important! What simple play activities do you do? How do you engage with the children in your life? Do you have other suggestions for simple play? Following each child's interest and lead can enrich the experience.

NANA SAYS ENJOY THOSE SCHOOL BREAKS AT CHRISTMAS

Now that the excitement of Christmas is over and the children do not go back to school for two weeks, it can be a good time to regroup as a family. Many parents also have reduced work hours and a chance to do activities with their children. It does not mean running around and shopping. Quiet ones like playing with the new toys for the little ones or having your older children teach you about your new gadgets. My Sonya is helping me with my new RIM Playbook! Close to my home there is a good hill by the library. When there is enough snow, old and young are toboganning or using a sled! Old fashioned fun. Little backyard skating rinks help the little ones practice their skating skills or even using a patch of ice found in parks would do. For the skiers and snowboarders, a chance to go to the slopes! Playing in the snow making snowmen or snow angels is also simple! A midwinter cleanup! Filtering through unused toys or items replacing with the newly acquired things. A drive to your major city, looking at the lights before the New Year when they all come down. Crafts, cookie making, a new recipe, or just watching movies together or even going out to a movie make for fun family moments. I remember enjoying the time at Christmas as a child. The break from school gave opportunities to lounge in my new jammies, read any new books and just play. As a teenager, spending time with friends and maybe a sleepover! Listening to music and dancing in my room! When my children were little, just enjoying the days off work to be with them! It can be a time of renewel before we face the rest of the winter. It is also a chance to establish some new winter routines to help enjoy a season most of us just tolerate. Children embrace snow and the joys it brings! Perhaps we can learn from them! What are some activities you do in winter? Are you enjoying the break with your children or grandchildren? Tell me your favourite winter tale!