Health

There were two fatalities in our family this morning. The second and third this week. My father was sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee this morning as I stumbled in. When he told me the news, I asked what he did with the bodies? He said that he buried them... in the compost. Poor chickens.

The first day of the ski season is usually followed by sore muscles. Even those of us who have trained diligently at the gym to get ready for the winter season often find muscle soreness after day one on the slopes, though usually for a much smaller duration.

When I was nine years old my parents decided it was time for all of us to learn to ski. We spent a few weekends driving around the Collingwood, Ontario area north of Toronto looking for a ski chalet. We fell in love with a quaint little chalet at the foot of a small ski resort called Talisman. Like many families from the city we would leave every Friday night and spend the weekends in the country. My brother, sister and I spent whole summers there with our mom while dad continued to commute from the city on weekends.

Generally on the snowiest days of the year, I ride the single line. With powder awaiting the quickest way to get back up to the top is the best. On one such occasion I mounted the chair lift with a middle aged British couple. After acquaintances were made, they posed a question that provoked much thought. “What is there for youth to do in Fernie?” I’m sure that it’s a question many people pose, hoping for a straight answer.

Now that summer is nearly here, many of you are probably supplementing your gym workouts with some outdoor running, walking, and playing. Here are some exercises that you can incorporate into your workout using just a park bench, picnic table or even a log on the trail to boost your workout! These exercises can be done on their own or in the middle of a run or walk. Start by walking or jogging for at least five minutes to get warmed up before performing the exercises.

The three years we spent as a family living in the Bahamas were full of diverse and pleasurable food experiences. Banana and avocado trees grew in the yard of our first home in Freeport. Avocados grow so big they can feed a whole table of guests. My mother would pick them warm from the tree to make “pear sandwiches” - mashed avocado on toast with salt and pepper.

A bird does not sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.
-Chinese proverb

An elderly man sits back against the down of his pillow and opens his eyes. The sparkle next to his bed causes him to turn. His young granddaughter sat quietly, waiting to bid her last good-byes. She smiles as he watches her. He could see that she had a question so he reached over and patted her hand. The young girl finally spoke, “Poppa, I was just wondering, why are you, you? What should I remember?”