NANA SAYS LESS IS MORE FOR SPRING/SUMMER LESSONS

As some sports like hockey lessons and games are coming to an end planning for spring/summer ones such as baseball and soccer begin. Dance and music competitions and examinations are occurring but will stop for the summer. Surviving all the lessons and events in a child's life is the norm for working parents. Being the third generation to have this stress- yes  it is part of the Canadian experience. Are there ways to handle it with less stress, probably not. Just organizing and knowing each activity has a beginning, middle and conclusion. One of my grandsons went to his hockey banquet. I remember my girls' Brownie and Guide banquets at the end of the year. The next two months will be busy then if smart do less over the summer. For example, swimming lessons occur year round but it is just as easy not to have swim lessons in the summer. What did I do? I used to take my girls to the pool, to the lake and other venues where they could practice what they learnt in their lessons. An experiential event rather than forced lessons. If in planned sports such as baseball, make the trips to the games fun and outdoorsy. Maybe a picnic afterwards or a quick trip to a local beach. How to make the time a family time may take some creativity too! Remember we put ourselves on these busy schedules. Music lessons can be lessened with more informal practice time at home. Getting off the treadmill of "busyiness" can take planning. I know some parents think it is a badge of honour to be busier than all the other parents around them! A good thing to do is to ask your child what he or she may want to do. Some kids really like the social aspect of their lessons or sports. Friends are made there too. Coming into the warmer season after this brutal winter could be more relaxing if you let it. Families sure have earned it. So a day at the beach practising all those swimming skills or just floating on a raft down a lazy river can be a learning experience too! Parents give yourself a break!

WEATHER TEACHES US ABOUT LACK OF CONTROL IN OUR LIVES

After the snow melts, comes the rain and all the weather that accompany it. Our region is still cleaning up from the Ice Storm of December 2013. Many woodlots with the snow melted reveal the enormity of the damage. As we listen to bad reports from the Southern United States, there is a reminder that thunderstorms and even tornadoes are on the horizon. As technological savvy as we are, weather or is it really Mother Nature that can influence our lives. It brings me to the point of being in control. How much control do we really have over our lives? Yes we can pay the bills, eat well, exercise and put activities in our lives that have meaning but there are so many things beyond our control. We could go a little crazy if we thought about all of them. Take our health-our body parts could be ticking time bombs! We can't control the weather or many other things in our lives. So what is control? Is it learning to live with what we have and being optimistic about the future? Is it accepting that we have some faith? Living and doing are control. Foraging ahead is control. Trying to eliminate some challenges. If you check the oil in your car, the oil light will not come on. It does not mean your car may never have a difficulty but trying to get good maintenance for it will surely help. Paying attention to your body's rhythms will help with your health. Old age can not be overcome but approaching it with exercise, regular checkups, and well balanced eating does help. Besides it is better to be over the hill then under it! Slowing down and doing activities safely. Do you really need to clean your own leaves from the eves troughs with an extension ladder? Would it be time to hire someone or at least do it with a partner spotting you? We can try to be prepared for life's emergencies like having batteries, water supply and insurance. We can not fend off all that life presents but can find ways to cope. Anticipating changes and embracing them with the tasks and activities that are manageable and well  in your control.  Books have been written with the theme- taking control of your life! Control-what does it mean to you?

LIFE IS LIKE AN AIRPORT

Airports are busy places. The infrastructure is complex and interactive. More than just planes taking off and landing, the number of staff to make it all happen is huge. Pearson International Airport with its terminals and surrounding area is an example of a large city airport. The highways mark the route to Terminal 1- the new one with all the design of a major architectural design and Terminal 3- the older one for some domestic flights and international charters. Terminal 2- the round one was demolished a few years ago. When it was built in the 1960s it was innovative for the time.  Watching the signs on Highway 427 to know which terminal has which airline. Private planes arrive where they are told. Parking and remembering where one parked is important entails the drive to the airport. If one misses the right road there are lanes to return to the right terminal. There is even a hotel in the terminal area. There is a departures level and an arrivals level so easy to know which one to be on. Better to drop your passenger then to go in the terminal for a departure.  More stores and food outlets are behind security so there is little to do if staying with a loved one or friend. Waiting on comfortable chairs with space and windows make the adventure durable. A closed in ramp on the gate for boarding the plane to your destination so one does not bear the elements. Life is convenient as within the 24 hours of the flight the boarding pass can be printed on a home computer. The airport is modern but the people taking flights are the same. Anxiety does prevail with some passengers. Fear of flying is known to be part of many passengers' psyche. Travel can be for pleasure, business or a family emergency. The economy class has rammed seats and a cost for food. Business or the old First Class comes with some perks. For some reason, I love the airport atmosphere. Perhaps the days I spent in my youth travelling on an Air Canada pass, it was important to learn to wait to determine if there was an available seat on the plane. Exploring whichever airport where the wait occurred gave a different perspective of the whole experience. Watching and observing people became a favourite pastime even as a young person. There is a rhythm to the whole event. People line up to confirm their seat at the ticket desk and place their luggage hoping to see it again. Waiting at the gate, the airline personnel checks boarding passes and allows one to go to board the plane. Arrivals are more fun for me. Recently I had to wait for a family member to arrive. Watching people new to Toronto come out of the baggage area and try to look cool while searching for someone to greet them or to determine which way to go to get a cab, bus or a waiting vehicle demonstrates a lot about people. Even with modern gadgets-cell phones, there is often a sense of urgency to find someone. Face to face is better than just texting. I like how people greet people. A smile. A hug. A kiss. Linking arms. Helping with luggage. That first conversation. Someone arriving for a holiday. Someone returning home. A group of school kids with a teacher directing them to follow me. An airport with all its levels of involvement always give me a sense of the complexities of life. The road to the airport, well marked with clues of where to go. Am I coming or going? Waiting or leaving? What is my destination? Which plane? My economic status- economy or first class! People of all ages. Single, friends, family or working! From the tower to security to ticket agents to ground crew to the cleaning staff and everyone in between, there are many people at work to keep it running. A slice of a community at large. If we put the airport under a microscope, it would tell us a lot about the larger society in which we live. So as I watch the flights go over my house at 6 a.m.- the red eyes from the western provinces or the ones in the sky south of me- the afternoon flights from Europe and other destinations or the  ones in the evening coming from the west again there is a sense of relief that the systems are in place for those coming to the area that all will be well. The airport- life itself!

THERE FOR THE GRACE OF GOD GO I

There for the grace of God go I! What a thought provoking statement? Do you ever really think about this one? Today while watching the news and the story of two young people in Nova Scotia convicted of killing a homeless man was one story featured. This statement came to mind. The poor man was just a lost soul not needing to be murdered. Could many of us be a potential homeless person in our lifetime? We picked different roads and have not ended there. But mental illness can be a reason to end on the streets. Failure and hopelessness! What about critical illness? Most people do not really chose to be so ill. Dying young! For someone my age, not even an option now. Do we really thank God or life that we have the life we have now? If your life is a good one, do you ever say thank you? Or are you someone that felt you were entitled to all that you have? Did you ever consider your life could have gone differently? So there for the grace of God go I can be such a reflective thought!

APRIL SHOWERS BRING MAY FLOWERS

That old adage April showers bring May flowers is so encouraging. Where did it start? Who said it first? The rain and sometimes snow in some areas push moisture into the ground. The bulbs, flowering bushes and other vegetation has a chance to emerge. Do you ever wonder at how methodical nature is? The birds return from the south. The flowers grow. The bugs are out in full force. All the parts of nature coming together to make a brighter picture. What a difference a month of Spring makes! Even though it is not the warmest time of the year, it is the optimistic time. There is the anticipation of being outside, enjoying the season, perhaps a road trip or 2, preparing the garden for the summer's bounty. April showers with pictures of umbrellas in our heads- colourful umbrellas! As the month is winding down, and that last glitch of a mild snowfall behind us, the belief of good times ahead. Oh yes we know there could be weather patterns that bring concerns too. But for now let's anticipate hope for a warmer and fun season! What are your wishes for the season? What do you like about being outside?

COUPLES COME IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES

Couples come in all shapes and sizes. New relationships. Ongoing ones. Old relationships. Relationships terminated by death, divorce, disinterest. Some animals mate for life. Canada geese mate for life. Couples can share their strengths, weaknesses and anything in between. It is more fun dancing as a couple than alone or with a bunch of women. Having someone that understands your needs and accepts your flaws. Loving someone through all the times-not just the good ones. Regardless of how much it seems cool to date and have many different partners, most people want to pair up. Look at all the dating services, especially online! Not we will find you a date but a marriage. So what makes a good couple relationship? Why do people stay with each other? Why do some people leave each other? What do you like most about being a couple?

NANA SAYS RAISING TEENAGERS CAN BE DIFFICULT

Being around modern teenagers is a reminder of the days I was a teenager and raising my own teenagers. Lessons, activities and homework have always been around!!  Oh yes there are gadgets, Skype, concern about cyber bullying and the constant use of cell phones, I-pods, tablets and computers but putting them aside hormones and feelings have not changed. My grandfather and father's generations went to war. Young children had jobs or part-time jobs too. Are today's youth smarter? I think not. They are exposed to more ways to gather information. But more apps on a gadget does not necessarily give more information. I have lots of apps on my gadgets and well some is useless junk! Just like junk flyers. As a parent, setting boundaries is your responsibility. All the pressures that teenagers face, your home becomes the safe haven from the world.  The gadgets can be turned off during dinner for example. But if you are a family like one witnessed eating at a restaurant recently with everyone checking their phones and no one really talking to each other as a parent you are setting an example of preference for your gadget then the people present including your own children. In other generations, no phone calls during dinner was a family rule in my home. Your friends knew not to call during the dinner hour. Teachers have a right to say turn off the gadgets during class. No texting, tweeting etc. I know I insist during a talk I give to new nurses to turn off the cell phones!! Of course I am met with looks of disdain! I don't care, I think it is rude behaviour. Well teaching and setting an example that some behaviour is rude is okay.  So do parents have an obligation to teach manners, you bet. Encouraging children to use all mediums such as reading a book, using a dictionary along with the infamous spell check, talking face to face not just through a gadget, doing math in your head without a calculator, handwriting and well listening to the sounds in your environment when walking are life's lessons. Well teenagers are argumentative. It has not changed. The yes but this and the yes but that. If the answer is no, then say no-there is no discussion. Basically, " I am the parent and you are the child!" Whether modern parents buy it, your teenager does want you to give boundaries-it keeps them safe. It lets them know there are rules. Yes the teenager must protest, it is what teenagers do. Yes you will be met, you are stupid, you do not understand me, another parent is better etc. It is what teenagers do.  I had a rule with my girls. To talk me about anything. Let me decide as the adult if the idea needed to go further. Let me as the adult give you safe guidance. I told my children to let me know if any friends were suicidal and putting themselves at risk. I told them it was better to lose a friendship then live with someone dying! Hormones run amuck! But hormones have not changed. Interest and curiosity with drugs, alcohol, smoking  and yes sex has not changed. There were times that teenagers of all generations like to drag race. Well it has not changed. Look at the odd teenage accident. I had school mates that died from such occurrences. The parent of the modern teenager just has to look at history. It was Socrates in Ancient Greece that said-what has become of the youth of today! And there were no gadgets!