Health

The other day, our buddy Jamie came over to our house. Jamie is part of our Fernie family and is a Fernie-uncle to our son. Jamie did not call ahead. He did not text. He had no reason or excuse to come over. He just stopped by. He visited. In our technological world, the random visit is becoming rare. He knocked on the door and our dog jumped up, her tail revealing the excitement of having a visitor. We chatted with Jamie, had a drink, and caught up with each other. He helped us move some furniture before biking home.

April 22 is Earth Day. However, I tend to agree with an infamous purple dinosaur who sings that, “Every day is Earth day.” There are many things individuals can do to reduce their environmental impact on the Earth. This month, in honour of Earth Day 2014, I will list 22 steps for improvement. I challenge readers to choose three items to focus on for improvement in their household. Many of the items provide the added benefit of saving money too; be green to save some green.

1. Lower your hot water temperature a couple of degrees.

2. Commit to using reusable grocery bags.

Do you remember Jump rope for heart? It is a Heart and Stroke Foundation fundraiser that encourages children to collect pledges and participate in a jump-a-thon at their school. To my surprise, 30 years later, it is still going on right here in Fernie and at approximately 4,000 schools across Canada! This has inspired me to help you get your skipping ropes out and get jumping this month!

Benefits of skipping:

I was extremely fortunate to grow up in a house where coming home at the end of the school day was something to look forward to. There was no feeling quite like home. Warm greetings, home cooking, and a safe space always awaited me. As I grew older, I had similar experiences of “coming home” when I had the opportunities to travel from my prairie suburbia into the Alberta foothills and Rocky Mountains. Hiking, camping, climbing and just being in nature, always made me feel complete. That life was exactly the way it should be regardless of what adversities I had been dealing with.

Prevention is key. We as a medical community know that preventing most of the chronic and life-threatening diseases of our time is easier (and cheaper) than treating those same diseases. Unfortunately, lifestyle changes are challenging, particularly if you attempt to change everything all at once and in a way that isn’t lasting. True changes need to be lifetime changes, with room for occasional modifications. This month’s article is simply a list of changes you can make to your life that can have a positive impact on you health immediately.

The north coast of France has a storied past from the days of William the Conqueror and Joan d’Arc, to the historic D-Day landings of World War II. As a family of four travelling together, Randal, Lisa, Mira and Kieran were looking for many things to make their holiday perfect and the magical, pastoral coastline of this western corner of Europe didn’t disappoint with its many enchanting, entertaining and educational charms.

So many of us start the year with the best of intentions to make positive, lasting changes in our lives with the goal in mind of improving our health, our relationships, our financial status, and our overall well-being. Unfortunately, the vast majority of changes we begin on New Year’s Day peter out before January is over and it seems that for many people, it takes another year end to get motivated to make another attempt at changing their habits.