Opinion
Live Well, Age Wisely: Approaching the Holidays
Director of Aging Well, Prairie 5 Community Action Council Yesterday I was “supervising” some work in the basement – keeping my friend company who was trying to figure out a water drainage issue. I don’t hang on to a lot of things but since I started writing in journals six years ago, I’ve kept all of them in a bookshelf.
From the Editor’s Desk
Last week I wrote about my trip to Fort Drum, New York to watch my son’s military promotion ceremony. I mentioned that one full day was spent on the ceremony and everything involved with it, and my final day in Upstate New York was spent helping him learn how to shop like a real broke adult, and helping decorate and organize his home.
Teaching kids about giving
On the quest to raising good humans, I realize that most people tend to use the holidays as a teachable time for kids. We encourage the need to do good for others who might have less than we do as we donate food, toys, money and help in our communities and beyond. We do this on overdrive in November and December because these months are within the “season of giving.” And while I wish this was more of a yearround notion; I still jump on board with my own three kids to embrace the season as a time to do for others with no expectation of gain. Many of the best ways to help others costs nothing at all, aside from some time and effort.
Memory Care Corner:
Montevideo Area Memory Loss Network (MAMLN) In my last article, I explained what sundowning was and some ideas on how to lessen sundowning symptoms. I explained the importance of reducing the stimuli during the evening hours, keeping the house well lit, and planning more active days, as the person who rests all day could likely be more restless at night.
Letter to the Editor
I have had the honor of being a member of the United Way of Southwest Minnesota (UWSWMN) Board of Directors since 2019, and I am the 2022 Community Impact Chair. I’ve learned a great deal and have been very fortunate to see firsthand how the UWS WMN touched the lives of thousands of people in Southwest Minnesota with the many services made available by our community partner programs.
Beyond Reason
People are Dying To Get in There October was a lot of skeletons and zombies and ghosts and it made me realize that Halloween omits an important step before the afterlife. The transition.
From the Editor’s Desk
In the third grade, our class started a school newspaper. At the time, I was a student in Redwood Falls Elementary School, but I distinctly remember the first article I wrote, titled "Tom Terry and his one man band".
Memory Care Corner: Sundowning
At our last event, we received questions about sundowning. As promised, I will utilize today’s column to shed some light on this subject.
Beyond Reason
October is the month where everyone tries to scare me. They plant ghosts and goblins and witches and skeletons in their front yard. And, yes, if you’re into property values, then clutter is indeed a bit scary. Then again, if the goal really is to frighten me, why on earth would you dress these decorations up in funny costumes? I’ve seen skeletons sporting scarecrow garb. Are they trying to scare me or the crows? I’ve seen ghosts donning sunglasses, Goblins rocking Norwegian sweaters, and witches looking less like they’re about to take to the air than they’re about to sweep up. Some attempt to instill fear with fake cobwebs (cotton stretched out and thin), adding plastic spiders lest I miss the connection. But cobwebs and spiders remind me that I really, truly - I mean it this time - need to buy a duster/swifter.