Enjoy this video of Fran & Marlo Cowan (married 62 years)
playing an impromptu piano duet together in the atrium of the Mayo Clinic.
Monthly Archives: May 2009
Care for the Caregiver – Part 2
By Kevin Brown | Bio
In last week’s post, I discussed how care for family Caregivers, especially when the provision of care occurs over prolonged periods, can leave the Caregiver drained of energy and in need of care themselves. I noted that Caregivers should endeavor to maintain their own health, keep up their social network, stay involved with family and share the caregiving.
One gentlemen responded with appreciation for the post, but also noted that for him (and perhaps
The Third Chapter
Bill Moyers recently interviewed Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, one of America’s leading educators and sociologists, about her new book, The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk and Adventure in the 25 years after 50. This book traces the stories of 40 people who choose to do work that is meaningful and who create their own unique ways
An Examined Life
By Jim Selman | Bio
I saw a Canadian documentary film last evening called “An Examined Life” by Astra Taylor. It was a series of ten-minute ‘lecturettes’ by notable intellectuals on a variety of questions, all more or less about the meaning of life and how do we make a difference. Everything was filmed as the speakers walked the streets (mostly in New York), which provided interesting backgrounds and added great value to the production. Unfortunately, the backgrounds often distracted from
Break the Mirror
By Shae Hadden
I don’t want to look in the mirror today. There’s a funny old woman staring back at me, and I can’t quite figure out who she is or where she belongs. Certainly not in my mirror! But there she is, plain as day. Wrinkled and wizened, meditating for nothingness, yet still wanting to save the world.
Perhaps I should do as Japanese poet Nanao Sakaki suggests:
"To stay young,
To save the world,
Break the mirror."
© 2009 Shae Hadden. All rights reserved.
Care for the Caregivers
By Kevin Brown | Bio
In last week’s post, I defined a Caregiver as “any individual who willingly gives of themselves to improve the quality of life for another individual.” There are times when the responsibility of providing care weighs heavy upon Caregivers. When this giving of self, especially when it occurs over prolonged periods, leaves the Caregiver drained of energy and in need of care themselves, it is time to take a step back and look at what one’s own needs are.
So what can Caregivers
Still Going Strong
The Herald Sun recently featured an article on Betty Calman, an 83-year-old instructor still going strong after 40 years of teaching yoga. Author of 3 books on yoga and a pioneer in bringing this practice to Australia in the 1950s, Ms. Calman was drawn back into teaching up to 11 classes per week 8 years ago by her daughter, who runs a health centre and needed more instructors. According to Betty, "You’re never too old. The body is a remarkable instrument. It can
stretch
Trauma as an Opening
By Shae Hadden
A friend shared corporate poet David Whyte’s recent article "A Fire Inside: Thoughts on the Creativity of Winter" with me. David uses a brilliant metaphor to explore the trauma of loss prevalent in the global economic crisis. He speaks of a a fire burning inside a home on a winter’s day as being like an "internal, alchemical, almost catalytic core of identity-making and decision-making….the
The Promise of Networking
By Jim Selman | Bio
Do you remember when networks of computers first arrived on the scene? Moving information onto the new technological platform decentralized and dispersed information and knowledge, a move that resulted in a significant communications revolution that still has repercussions today. Giving people the ability to access and share what had previously existed only on paper or in the minds of certain individuals not only sped up the rate of transactions, but also freed individuals from a certain amount of manipulation.Some resisted the move to computers, feeling threatened by what they perceived as a loss of control—they equated giving up the ‘management’ of ‘their’ information and knowledge as a threat to their power. Ironically, organizations eventually embraced computers as a means to ‘manage’ knowledge, creating complex online systems to store and share the experience and expertise of their employees.
We’re now witnessing an
The 100-Day Nonsense: Too Much Opinion, Not Enough News
By Jim Selman | Bio
I admit I am not a fan of television in general and the broadcast news media in particular. However, I found myself spending some time in bed this week after some minor surgery and cruising the tube for something to watch. I was amazed at how many channels are now dedicated to around-the-clock news. I landed on CNN and was ‘blitzed’ with a super fancy build-up to "The Presidential Scorecard: The First 100 Days". This is obviously choreographed by the same people who can make war sound like a college football game and almost anything ordinary sound significant–unfortunately so much so that it is hard to distinguish what really is significant.With today’s technology, we can all ‘vote’ on whatever the media is commenting on and have our opinions added to the tally. This is, of course, just the latest in the media’s attempt to engage viewers in a never-ending commentary about whatever is going on. I think this phenomenon is further evidence of our becoming a spectator society.
Surfing channels, I found that all the programs now have panels of folks who give their opinion about whatever item