Time Out

Nature has its way. When I don't listen to my own body I get knocked down by a bug. Now I must take time to rest, heal and maybe, just maybe, catch up on reading material put off for over three years. The funny thing is that I really enjoy being involved in many volunteer activities. I have a difficult time saying "no" to requests, but now I have to slow down, take a breather, let myself heal and live "the virtue of selfishness".

If I don't take care of myself first, then nothing else of use will follow. I have known this for years. I have preached it to others. When will I listen to my own advice? You would thing in my mature years I would be living in the correct order...self first, then others. It is as they tell the parents on the airplanes, "If the oxygen mask comes down you put it on yourself first before your child or you may not live to take care of your child." It makes sense!

Now, for this time, and hopefully for all time, I will remember to heed this advice from many far wiser than I. At this moment I may be too miserable to catch up on reading, but I will rest, do the liquid thing and chicken soup. Life will go on without me. It always has and always will.

Later.......

Memorial for a Veteran

They came from Idaho, Colorado, Nebraska and Hot Springs. Family and friends came to pay last respects to a veteran, a fitness trainer, business owner, son, nephew and beloved friend. He had lived in Hot Springs for only a few years, but he left an indelible mark on many...some for fitness and health, others for inspiration and moral support.

He had been through the programs at our VA, opened a fitness studio and offered his story in my book, Reveille in Hot Springs, in order to do his part to help us save our VA. During the memorial service tears fell freely as many of us attempted in some way to express our feelings about this remarkable young man who left us too soon. The following was my testimonial to his memory:

We have come to pay tribute to a very special person, a young man who was much loved by this veteran community, not only for his incredible gifts for assisting many of us on a road to better health, but also for his caring for each one he met and impressed with his intelligence, acceptance and abundant sharing of his love.

I first met Wade in late February of 2013. I was in the editing process for my book about our battle to save our VA in Hot Springs when I received an email from my editor. "You don't have any stories that bring us inside the domiciliary that many of the veterans are passionate about saving. You need to find a veteran who can tell what goes on in the treatment program at your VA."

Wade eagerly stepped up to the plate. He wanted to save our VA where it was, in the town that had embraced him and made him feel safe. He was proud of his part in this battle. He felt that he would live on forever with his story he had shared.

Not only will he live on in this book, but he will live on in all of us clients who, under his encouragement and guidance, have improved our health. I began working with Wade as my personal trainer in September of 2013. I was blessed to have had an entire year under his unique training, unlike any physical training available anywhere else. He sized up each client and adapted a program to meet the needs of each one.

My request had one focus.....I wanted to walk again, do the River Walk, including the stairs up to the museum and I also wanted to be able to get onto the motorcycle behind my husband and ride as we had one years before. I wanted to be back to my former self before my surgeries.

Two summers before I came to Wade I had had three surgeries within a month and, without my fully realizing it, had lost muscle tone and could only walk a few blocks before fatigue set in. Steps had become impossible without hanging on to a railing.

Last Tuesday, September 9th, I was especially eager to keep my appointment. I wanted to share the news that I had walked the entire path and made it up the stairs for the first time since the surgeries. I also had made it on Bob's motorcycle. Wade never got to hear my news, which I knew would have delighted him, but since last week, every time I take the stairs, I find myself saying, "I am doing this, Wade. I will keep on with all you taught me." When I feel like whining, "I can't,", I remember Wade's quick encouraging, "But you can!"

This is one client who will never forget.

Cool Down!

It is September and we should't be surprised when the weather cools and the air smells like Fall. But, it was a rather dramatic drop from the constant heat of the past summer to the chill-in-the-air that envelops us today. Don't get me wrong. I am definitely not complaining. This is my favorite time of the year when I can walk the river walk with a light jacket, do the chores with no perspiring, water the plants, the bees and the birds less frequently, close the windows at night and cover up with a blanket. I always whine over the extemes of the heat slowing up my activities and the cold numbing me while I pull on a pile of blankets or sweaters.

Each season has its special beauty, but this is truly the easiest time of living. Bob is working away each day putting in new windows, a job that was almost impossible at times during the peak of the hot days. I am using the oven again, and preparing meals that will warm up the house. After three months of absence from our household menu, the stews, baked chicken and chili dinners are a welcome change.

Also, to add to the fresh energy, my health has recovered after a year of battling fatigue after my three surgeries of last summer. Don't let the doctors fool you. It takes more than six weeks to get back on board. Well, there are still occasional lapses, but that could be due to my years creeping up on me. They are beginning to take a toll. I must remember this....slow down, take more rests and expect a little less of this body after 80 years. I should keep reminding myself not to work until I fade to exhaustion. I am grateful to be able to keep up as much as I do, so I say welcome to my new world of a slower pace, and I will remember to take time to relish the seasons in their turn.

Happy cool down and slow down from the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Off We Go

Remember the song, "Off we go into the wild blue yonder?" Well, we are off again, but not into the blue sky, so don't know why I thought of that song.

Since 1989 I have been part of a research study titled ARIC (atherosclerosis risk in community study). I am proud to be included in this research of the heart and brain. I told myself when I began this project that it was the least I could do for the advancement of health research. When I lived in the Cities it was an easy jaunt to the research center. It is a bit more of a hassle driving the 600 some miles, but I am grateful I am still alive and able to be included in this study.

Each year the project loses more participants, mostly through death and illness. This will be my fifth time actually going through the tests. Other years we contribute through phone calls. I really hope I can continue to drive the distance as long as possible to be of as much assistance as I can. It is a wonderful feeling to feel useful. As long as I am useful, I know I am living, not just alive.

I will check in on return from new adventures.

Motel 6 to the Rescue

On a previous blog last September I wrote about losing our health club, Evans Plunge, for the six months of winter. I complained about losing the healing waters, the steam room, sauna and hot tubs, and also the loss of a gathering place for social connections. I was especially concerned for those of us with physical problems whose only safe workout is in the water.

Members, though understanding the reasons for the closure, were upset at the absence of the benefits especially needed during the winter months. They are planning a meeting about the situation. Hopefully they will come to some resolution about this issue.

Meanwhile, upon hearing the news, our water aerobics instructors searched for another venue for our classes. Motel 6 responded, graciously opening their cozy pool, while raising the temperature for our two classes and furnishing us with a dressing room. For a minimal fee the pool is open to anyone. So during the next six months we have the advantages of the water for exercise plus the added bonus of the social interactions which, as our instructor reminds us, is as important for our health as the workout.

In our small community word travels fast. Deprived of one venue, two exercise classes and a local motel found a solution. Indeed, we could have sulked all winter, but a window was opened when one door closed. The winter no longer looks so long or cold.