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Health & Fitness

Grow In Your Life As Your Garden Prospers Too

The Talmud which is a central text of mainstream Judaism is a collection of oral traditions and  it has many sayings attributed to it. One such saying is: Every blade of grass has its Angel that bends over it and whispers "Grow, Grow."  This is what we all have to do regardless of our age. Especially as seniors, we must keep active with our minds and our bodies. We have to do activities that allow our mind to continue on in a good manner and also exercise for our bodies.

 

Reading books whether on real books or Kindles, using  computers, walking, using a stationary bike, going to concerts, shows and an exceptional activity is to learn to ballroom dance regardless of your 'now' age.

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My dear late mom use to volunteer at Sinai Hospital in their gift shop and also in their well-baby clinic helping doctors and nurses to take care of the babies that were brought in there for health reasons. She loved to put on her yellow and white volunteer dress uniform and she felt so proud that she was accomplishing a good deed in being a volunteer. I use to tell her she looked so cute in her Nancy/Nurse outfit. That is what kept her young and vital even though she was an advanced senior.

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My activity is to write articles encouraging everyone to learn to ballroom dance whether they are senior or not yet seniors. There are available inexpensive group class beginner lessons at many studios where one can learn the basics of Waltz, Tango, Salsa, Foxtrot,Cha Cha and Jive/Jitterbug. After you learn, you can go on Saturday nights or Sunday afternoons and dance at a studio I frequent called The Promenade on Lord Baltimore Drive in Woodlawn and for a mere fifteen dollars for three hours of delightful disc jockey music in a beautiful studio, you can practice what you have learned in class. Besides the music, making new friends and eating delightful snacks, you will be in a new world of ballroom dance.

 Any problems or sadness you may have in your life will be forgotten for the three hours of complete enjoyment. People dress up, are friendly and your mind is so active with your dancing and remembering what you have learned; you will be amazed at the happiness and peace that will surround you there.

 

You will be Ginger Rogers and your partner will be Fred Astaire and you will be encircled by what I call a 'dance rainbow.'

 

I write articles encouraging and inspiring everyone to ballroom dance that are featured on dance websites, blogs and in dance printed magazines. A California senior of 79.5 (her words) years named Jeannie was so inspired by my articles that she started at that age to take dance lessons and she had been in a depression for years because her husband was in a nursing home for 20 years. Her life opened up to things she had not envisioned and she danced in shows with her young teacher before studio members and she even went on to compete in competitions with him. Her depression was gone and she was a happy senior and now over 8 years later, she is still dancing and is so happy with her new life.

 

When we had our pharmacy many years ago, an old man Mr. Garland came in every day to chat with the customers, the employees and sometimes to shop. When I worked there, he would call out when he

saw me and say "Where is my Angel?" My husband, the owner and pharmacist there would call out and say “Mr. Garland are you flirting again with my wife?" Everyone would smile and this little act from Mr. Garland helped pass his sad day and it gave him some socialization. It also made me feel sweet that he called me Angel. I went out and I bought a key chain and a refrigerator magnet that said Angel after he passed away so I would always remember him and his tender remarks.

 

So as the old saying from the Talmud said about the blade of grass and Angels, we should keep on growing and growing and we will feel elated about our life. As this site is called The Patch, so it is a blade of grass growing into a patch and we see all kinds of news about activities we can participate in which will enable us to grow and to be strong in our minds and bodies even as seniors. Seniors mean we are at this age and we have become the important elders and we are encompassing a new time in our life with adventure and hope. We continue to Grow, Grow and we are happier for doing activities that are splendid.

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