Last week I shared some of my favourite quotes. Here is a longer one to (hopefully) put a smile on your face.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG by George Carlin

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctor worry about them. That is why you pay him/her.
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. ” An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.” And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s.
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

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What do you do when you’re having a challenging week? Do you go into overwhelm, victim mode or think ‘Why me?’ It’s so easy to do, isn’t it?

People who ask themselves questions like ‘What can I learn from this situation?’ or ‘What can I do differently next time?’ often bounce back from dark places of despair a lot quicker than those who don’t.

I find doing things that bring me joy when I’m having a difficult time is also very helpful. This week has been challenging in several ways, so I’ve chosen to nurture my inner child more than usual. Today I went to a children’s party session at the library. It marked the end of the local library’s summer reading quest. I enjoyed listening to the librarians read and act out silly stories, pulling funny faces and dancing with the preschool kids and the ‘loopy librarian’. It was so much fun, and concluded with a treasure hunt around the library. Everyone who found the six hidden animal pictures and answered the questions about them were able to choose a prize. I chose a lovely Nemo eraser which I can pass on to my granddaughter.

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I didn’t write a blog last week. I had every intention of doing so, even though I was on holidays. But then I received a distressing message confirming my intuitive feeling that something was wrong with my son. He’d been mugged in downtown Montreal after returning from a wonderful holiday in New York City. One of the four youths involved had a knife. Thankfully he didn’t use it, so my son wasn’t hurt. They took his iphone, and ran off laughing. I was so grateful that he was safe. The outpouring of love from his family and friends helped comfort him, even though most of it was from a distance. I was also very grateful to have skype, as this enabled us to support him from afar. Thankfully he is doing fine now, so I am very relieved. I marvel at his resilience.

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