Tag: hope

Making a difference, one decision at a time

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One person can make a difference, and everyone should try

John F. Kennedy

Imagine if our world was led by leaders today who encouraged each of us to make a difference like strong leaders have done in the past. There has never been a more urgent need around the globe for strong leadership encouraging compassion, collaboration, and co-operation. We are surrounded by crisis and chaos and need to think of others during all of our day to day interactions.

Misinformation abounds and we need to carefully reflect on where our information originates from and consider the influence it has not only on ourselves but on others prior to sharing it.

When we put our personal needs and desires above the health and safety of others, it will eventually circle back to hurt us. Tragically, it may harm those you care about as well. Treat everyone in the same manner in which you would like to be treated. Globally, our lives depend upon a collective push forward to follow the golden rule.

Stay safe and healthy!

Finding that spark at any age

Photo by Alex Andrews on Pexels.com

If you find something you love it’s so exciting. Your brain is a bowl of energy. It gives you such passion for life. That is the power of creativity.

Thelma Pepper

One of the most fascinating women I have come across is a photographer who just yesterday celebrated her 100th birthday. Thelma Pepper didn’t begin her creative journey until she turned 60. It was at that point in her life, she embarked on a long career creating stunning black and white portraits of people from rural Saskatchewan. She elevated her subjects, celebrating hardworking people who had amazing stories that would have otherwise never have been told. Thelma also told compelling stories through her camera lens, about the lives of many individuals living in long term care homes.

Her message of finding something you love to do especially later in life is both impressive and inspiring. Creativity does stimulate energy and it can appear at any age or stage of life. I have noticed during this time of physical and social isolation that I was missing that creative spark. My attention span seemed to have vanished and finding that energizing passion for either photography or writing has been almost non-existent. At best, I have been able to revisit pieces of writing and photos taken and focus on an editing process instead of creating anew.

My writing practice seems stunted, some of the tricks that have worked in the past no longer inspire. I am putting in the time but don’t feel that I have that upbeat energy I get when my brain and heart work in tandem. All of those editing tasks that I had been putting off are now completed and submissions for publication have been for writing pieces written some time ago. I have been missing that form of energy that completely envelopes you, making it hard to leave what you are doing when you are required to attend to something else.

Tired of cleaning the house, I have been seeking that elusive creative energy from the stories of other artists which led me to Thelma’s story. Her award winning art is stunning and her message is one of hope that at any age, we can navigate life transitions and begin a creative career by following what leads us to touch that passion within ourselves. What serves as your source of creativity and inspiration? Hopefully you are finding your way through this pandemic, overcoming the difficulties that may have arisen and are moving forward in the direction you would like to be going in.

Stay safe and healthy!

Shifting Truths

What will be required to create meaningful, equitable change in our lives? Certain truths have become evident to me during this pandemic that suggest collectively we have the need to pause, reflect, and consider what is truly needed to make sustained and real change so we can move forward in a good way. Having vacillated between watching the news too often and not watching it at all, I thought I had achieved some type of balance. This past week I have found that my focus has once again been on what has been going on in the world around me.

Thinking about some of the larger issues that we must confront, has caused me to wonder if we are simply spinning without direction only to end up with just more of the same problems we had pre-pandemic. Consider news events over the past week – the focus has shifted from how will we safely reopen and stave off a second wave of the virus that has wreaked havoc across the world to a long overdue and serious dialogue about systemic racism.

Hundreds of thousands of people from across the globe have been involved in lending their voices to the Black Lives Matter protests in spite of the possible risks of spreading the coronavirus. Stories of racism that are being shared right now are heartbreaking and have precipitated a plethora of ideas about how to effect real changes.

One of the ideas that has been circulating through many communities is that police should be defunded. Journalists around the world are sharing news about more protests, petitions, and equally as many stories from politicians and police officials stating that they believe this is the wrong approach.

This seems to be a repeating process that we have seen with other critical issues such as climate change, the best strategies to manage this global pandemic, and better ways to care for the elderly and marginalized members of our society, etc. etc. Just as quickly as these stories are told, and shared widely we hear all of the rationale as to why suggested changes can’t be made. Point and counter point. Or worse yet, nothing more is written or discussed as the news cycles bring other issues forward.

During this time of loosening our lockdown, it seems more plausible that we might have an opportunity to come together to make changes that have been discussed for decades. There has been more emphasis on our collective global needs than ever before in my lifetime. So I can’t help wonder if this will be the moment in our history when we will change course en masse. Focus, tenacity, and individual commitment to change will be required on a large scale.

Electing politicians who are not narcissistic, self absorbed, and can be held to account would be a wonderful place to start. One can be criticized I suppose for dreaming of a kinder, more generous way of treating one another as well as a bonafide coming together to save our environment. But I don’t think that would stop me from writing about the need to do better than we are now. How about you? What do you think we should do to make a real impact at this time in our lives?

Emotional SeeSaw

It occurred to me this morning that there are some similarities to our current world which requires everyone to practice social distancing and the beginning weeks of my retirement. Clearly, the magnitude of what we are experiencing globally really has no comparison, but every once in awhile I have a strong sense that I have recently experienced something similar in the past couple of years.

Upon reflection, the period of time leading up to retirement included a low grade level of fear – to be expected when we encounter a life changing experience for the first time. When I have a moment of deja vu, I recall having felt like I was stepping off a sharp cliff with no real sense of whether or not I had a parachute or where I might land. This feeling has resurfaced for me from time to time during the pandemic. No one knows when this will be over, what course it may take, and what the long term impact on our lives may be.

Now, to be clear, retirement was my choice, and was within my control. There were also many moments of excitement, and positive anticipation. However, change is anxiety provoking and as with what is occurring now, I did experience some trepidation about what the future would hold.

When I first left full time work to join my husband who had been retired for many years, it seemed we were running in a three legged race. Spending all of our time together, day in and day out, typically only happened during vacation times. So we had to adjust to this and I’m certain it was harder for my husband than for me. Definitely not the smoothest transition, a few steps forward accompanied by several steps back.

Fast forward to just prior to the pandemic and it is worth noting how far we had come. We had managed to achieve a wonderful place of balance between being able to spend much more time together doing things we had always hoped to do as well as to pursuing our own individual interests and spending time with different groups of people.

Social isolation has moved us right back to that same place. So occasionally, we find ourselves negotiating a three legged race. I suspect that because we have navigated these waters just a couple of years ago, that we will soon find ourselves back in balance. This concern is one that several people have mentioned to me recently and it takes some strategizing to find the right rhythm that works for a partnership.

The largest challenge I find at this time, is the looming sense of the unknown. I struggled with this for awhile during my transition into retirement and had moved into a place just before the pandemic of my own design. Now I find myself trying to once again find my footing as some of my current favourite activities have ceased. At times, it feels like being on a emotional seesaw and to avoid tumbling off, I am trying on different strategies to find a sense of equilibrium.

Rather than focusing on the things I am unable to continue to do, I find it helpful to ground myself by acknowledging daily all that I still have in my life. Being patient with myself and my husband, and by reaching out to those I care about, I feel more able to manage the ups and the downs. It has become a new routine for me to build in time at the start of each day to reflect on what my needs are and figure out how to meet them.

The one aspect that I have realized that is the same as my recent experience of transitioning into retirement and this new world of social distancing, is just how important it is to maintain a sense of optimism and hope. Perhaps you have found strategies that work well to keep you in balance during this time. Please feel free to share them. Stay healthy and well!

Gardening for the Future

With so many of our lives turned upside down from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is becoming crucial to find strategies and activities that have purpose and future orientation. Finding something that allows us to consider the future without worry about the novel coronavirus can be challenging. Having something to look forward to is both grounding and necessary for our mental well-being.

Many news stories are currently focused on the question around “how long will this crisis last”. Without a crystal ball, and by listening to medical experts who describe scientific models that chart and track the spread of this pandemic, can leave us feeling overwhelmed and anxious. None of us have a sense of what will occur over the next number of weeks or months.

My brother mentioned the concept of a “victory garden” to me last week and since then I have been using time on the internet to learn more about this phenomenon from the Second World War. Certainly this type of research has been both inspiring and has served to keep me from obsessively reading about our world crisis. People have always creatively used soil cultivation to grow food in ways to help others as well as themselves.

There are wonderful models of community and kitchen gardens that will likely flourish over the next couple of months. Gardening is a great activity to assist us in having a more future oriented focus. Watching seedlings pop up, preparing the soil (if it ever warms up!), and organizing and planning your garden design are great things to look forward to. Chatting with friends about seed exchanges and thinking about sharing seedlings and cuttings is a welcome diversion from today’s events.

In this early stage of spring, we can also consider growing vegetables, herbs, and some fruits for others. For neighbours who don’t have the space, for friends and family members, and for those in our lives who have lost their jobs at this time. We can also try and find extra spaces in our yards so we can contribute collectively to our food banks. Last year I noticed vegetables being grown along boulevards in our community and in other public spaces where you used to find grass.

Actually, the more I reflect on growing my garden this year, the more I realize the beneficial aspects of gardening for good mental health in addition to providing us with healthy food. Gardening as a physical activity uses muscles that we don’t often use throughout the winter months. Digging in soil has been shown to improve our immune systems and I have always found the feeling of earth in my fingers to be healing.

For parents now home with their children as schools have been closed, what a wonderful opportunity for education and enrichment by growing things. Collectively we can create opportunities for bees and butterflies to flourish and keep our ecosystems healthy. On this first day of April, I intend to plan my garden, order and pick up seeds on the curb of my favourite gardening centre. This day feels better already. Stay healthy and well!

Hearts of Hope

I ventured out of my house this morning at my usual time for a walk and found the lack of people out and dearth of traffic noises somewhat eerie. The birdsong, however, was cheerful and loud, heralding the coming of spring and warmer weather.

I wanted to see if there were hearts in the windows of homes in our neighbourhood or messages in the shape of a heart along my route. At the end of one of our national news programs last evening, there was a short segment about a movement that parents and children have embarked on to inspire hope in others.

Many homes in the news clip had colourful hearts taped to windows and there were hearts with messages posted on poles and trees. Children and parents around the world have been posting these hearts to support and encourage each other. These images have gone viral on numerous social media sites and have also been sent to people through text message and emails. It was a pleasant way to end a difficult and challenging news program.

Foot traffic along the biking/walking path I typically travel along has been light as people are staying home and being mindful of social distancing to try and slow the rate of the COVID-19 virus. Lately, when I encounter other walkers or people on their bikes, we smile politely in acknowledgement but try to maintain our distance. I have missed the morning conversations that I often have with friends and neighbours who are also out walking early each morning.

Along the path this morning, I found a large red heart tied to one of the trees in the park that lies adjacent to where I was walking. It wouldn’t withstand too many days of strong winds or spring rain but was still where someone had placed it, most likely two days ago. The message written upon it was difficult to make out, but seemed to contain a note that we will get through this time together.

Further along the path, there were sidewalk chalk messages, now partially erased from a schiff of snow yesterday, imploring us to look after one another, and to help each other out by staying apart. Some of the messages appeared to be written by children and others I imagine were crafted by parents.

Laying down these thoughts in pastel colours, I imagine that parents created these messages in heart shapes to reassure their children, to support others as well as to cultivate a sense of optimism for the future within themselves. The resilience of families in our community and willingness to care for and encourage others is a positive sign that we will, indeed, get through this together.

On the final leg of my morning walk, I wandered down the street towards my home and did find several homes with colourful hearts taped on the inside of their windows. I was pleased to have discovered these images close by. It was a comforting and welcome sight.

It was a different walking experience through my neighbourhood this morning but discovering the number of hearts taped on living room windows, and sidewalk chalk messages written in the shape of a heart, was uplifting and serves as a welcome beacon of hope. I hope that you, too, find hearts of hope in your neighbourhood.

Stay healthy and well.