This past month has been dedicated to not only sorting out my business but also the business of my uncle, who is still in my care.

As I move items from his home to mine so that he can comb through them, I realized that he has nine decades’ worth of life compiled into boxes. Within those boxes are other boxes of trinkets, photos, memorabilia. (more…)

I know I haven’t been blogging lately…has anybody missed me (ever the optimist, that’s me!)?

My sister was here for five weeks and it was the usual go, go, go with family and friends wanting to see her. During her visit, however, we carved some time out to have a heart-to-heart with Mumsie about her care. While Mumsie is still mentally sharp and alert, her physical balance is not what it used to be, although she continues to stay active and thoroughly enjoys her twice-weekly exercise classes with “the girls” at the nearby senior centre, which provides both mental and physical stimulation. (more…)

Even though I have only ever known my uncle from a distance, he is the only one I can call my favorite – and he is now in need of assistance.

A few weeks ago, I was commuting back and forth for up to five hours a day before work to support him in the critical time of his health. The few extra hours that I would normally spend with my growing child was suddenly diverted to support Uncle Bob instead.

Was this a difficult choice to make? (more…)

I was really moved to write this as it has been on my mind lately since I have been working with my 91-year-old uncle.

Funny how I have had many interesting comments since taking him under my care.

“Is he your father’s brother?”
“Is he your mother’s brother?”

No he is neither, he is actually my father’s cousin by adoption. (more…)

Stop the planet, I want to get off! Well, not really – I’m kind of enjoying myself at the moment, even though I feel like I’m caught in a vortex and would appreciate having a bit of time to come up for air…

My sister is visiting and we’re having a lovely time catching up on our lives and spending quality time with Mumsie, who’s absolutely thrilled to have her two daughters with her. Of course, when we gang up on her to try and get her not to do something she shouldn’t, she’s somewhat less thrilled! (more…)

During a recent trip visiting my family, I had the opportunity to observe an interesting juxtaposition between the mind of my 92-year old father(a former educator), who is losing many of his mental capacities, and my nine-year old nephew (diagnosed with autism and delayed development), who is succeeding in his efforts to gain mental capacities. Throughout my life I have appreciated the vast diversity of minds. During my medical school training, I chose a psychiatric elective in a locked ward where I would be in a room with 20 people debilitated by various psychoses. Many were a danger to themselves and others. None were capable of interacting safely in society. They were all hearing voices of various deities and devils giving them information and instructions. Some spoke “in tongues” that were not comprehensible to me, although they all seemed to be in full communication with each other. I realized that I was in the minority, the only one not hearing the voices or understanding the language. Most of these people had either a deficiency or excess of specific chemical neurotransmitters that created their “state of mind”. Just a few drops of one of these chemicals determinded the fine line between normal and abnormal. (more…)

Hippity hopping through the beginning of this year of the Rabbit.

I feel like I have been hangin’ on to one of the bunny’s ears as it flops around during the bouncing. Wheeee. Whoooaaaw.

The universe has had so many of us whirling with the winds because our beautiful planet is in such a state of change and shifts. (more…)

Attending this workshop was a change of plan for me (I won’t tell you the one I ditched out on in order to go listen to Edi!)…for whatever reason, when this afternoon came, I was just pulled to check out what Edi Pasalis had to say in her workshop More Hours or More Per Hour? Lessons in Right Livelihood From MBSR. Maybe it’s because I’m new to this whole “yoga teacher” thing and I could use some sound-headed business advice, or maybe it’s just because I like the way “right livelihood” rolls off the tongue. Whatever it was, it was enough to pull me in. (more…)

She said it herself, but it bears repeating: Felicia Marie Tomasko’s workshop, Ingest, Digest, Rest – Ayurvedic Tips for Healthy Digestion was perfectly timed for the evening of the last day of the conference. After five days of constant wisdom ingesting, I think we all needed to hear about how to take time and let things settle. And Felicia, being a yoga and Ayurveda expert, had tons of helpful advice about how we can take simple steps to aid our digestion, physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. (more…)

I am going to make an embarrassing confession and tell you that as SOON as this call was over, I went right over to Marci Shimoff’s YogaHub profile page and wrote her a very nerdy email. And although nerdiness and adoration are two of my strong suits, I am not usually one to write “I love you” emails to complete strangers. I am going to blame the awesomeness of Marci’s message in her session today entitled Love for No Reason – More Than You Ever Dreamed Of, for my ensuing fan-dom. (more…)