Tag Archives: conversations

Jul21

You’re Never There

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You’re Never There

I disagree. I can’t say I’m never there, but I definitely can say that I’m seldom there. And just where is there? Why, it’s Facebook of course!

Just why am I seldom there? Because life is to be lived. That means up front and personal. That means interacting with other people. It doesn’t mean staring at a screen on my phone or on my laptop all day. That isn’t living.

Basically, I share my WordPress blog on Facebook. I belong to three writers groups on Facebook which I don’t always check out as often as I would like to. I’ve learned a lot about writing and publishing from these groups. As I’ve said many times before, send me a private message if you want me to be aware of something important going on in your life. With hundreds of friends on Facebook, I don’t have time to waste scrolling and sifting through far too many shared posts every day to find the ones that may truly be worth reading.

Occasionally I read posts on Facebook from a group called If You Grew Up In Winnipeg. There are two types of people who post here…those who still live there and haven’t experienced life outside of Winnipeg and those that have escaped Winnipeg when they have discovered the adventures that can be found elsewhere. However I must admit that I do find some of the photos quite interesting.

I had a stimulating conversation with a friend in Winnipeg last night. We’re both divorced, have adult children and grandchildren. We both concluded that our lives have not turned out the way we envisioned them years ago. But we do find our lives challenging as well as fulfilling.

And I wholeheartedly continue to embrace this philosophy…………………. First Coffee, Now What?

And you?

Dec4

Conversations With Kids

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Conversations With Kids

When I was in Culiacan last month I had an interesting conversation with my 14 year old grandson. He starts high school next year and is already thinking about a career. He told me he’s interested in becoming a psychologist, especially in the area of marriage counseling. We then talked about therapy and the difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist.

Flash back almost thirty years ago and I recall having a similar conversation with my son about careers. My son was an avid bowler and ate, slept and breathed bowling. His goal was to someday own a bowling alley. When he was older and the opportunity arose to invest in an alley with friends, he turned it down. Instead my son became an accountant and is a partner in his firm. He rarely sets foot inside a bowling alley.

Years ago when I taught in Guadalajara I had a class of teenage girls, fourteen and fifteen year olds. One of them was very interested in cosmetology and wanted her own salon. Today she is a doctor. Another one had her sights set on becoming a nurse. Instead she married young and had a baby right away and never did go back to school.

I think back to when I was fourteen. Back then girls were expected to be teachers, nurses or secretaries. I wanted none of that. Yet today I look back on my life and the most rewarding times were when I was teaching; whether in a classroom, a water aerobics class or as a fitness instructor. And I volunteer my time teaching English now in Mexico.

My granddaughter in Canada is only five but I wonder what her aspirations will be when she is fourteen. I look forward to a very interesting conversation.