Another voice
I can’t quite imagine the thoughts and feelings of Charles Darwin when he learned of a rival’s simultaneous articulation of the origin of species by natural selection. Reasonable scholars have identified it as ‘dawning horror’. For me, discoering that others write the same things I think is the opposite. I see something more akin to burgeoning satisfaction. I felt that when I tripped over Jan Greenberg’s post Writing, Creativity and Aging on the blog I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids).
Jan writes of her own challenges to write for young adults as she is aging and how considering how others have aged creatively (great artists are always great company) has solidified her resolve to do the same. What worked? She mentions a new subject, a new discipline, and a new view (in this case of the world). Interesting, yes; inspiring, absolutely!
What is the difference?
What is the difference between a mantra and a bumper-sticker? I’ve never before needed to ponder that question but now I do. Pithy statements perceived to be of importance; okay that’s the same. But…what if anything is the difference. Time will tell.
Sherri Lynn Wood is an artist, especially if your definition of the role includes provoking thought. Her work in a show at the Weatherspoon Gallery at UNCG and upcoming workshop Group-Stitching Mantra is intriguing. More soon. After I’ve group-stitched a mantra or two.
Another insight into the brain
Traumatic brain injury rightfully captures much media attention at the moment, courtesy, in part, of the struggles of service personnel and military veterans. The New York Times today (August 9, 2009) covers this interesting and important topic on the front page in an article, Brain Power: After Injury, Fighting to Regain a Sense of Self. The insights gained as people, often young, strive to force the brain to learn anew offers an amazing story but also a lesson in the dynamic possibilities of the brain. And while it is important to emphasize that these possibilities are life-long, this quotation resonates with me:
“The brain is ‘plastic,’ recent research suggests; intact areas can recruit nearby, healthy brain tissue to bypass damage and compensate for lost function.
It does not seem to happen, however, without effort; to reroute signal traffic down back channels, the brain needs traffic, scientists say. It needs to be active, solving problems, meeting social expectations.”
This is brain fitness in another guise! This is one of the main points to active, successful, healthy, and creative aging! The author goes on:
“In studies of dementia, researchers have found that some people who are lucid until a very old age have brains that appear riddled with Alzheimer’s disease. Many of them remain social to the end, engaged in regular card games or debates with friends who make mental demands of them.”
This is it! This is the power of “enriched environments”, to borrow a phrase from the Living Well with Memory Loss conference I attended last week.
Thoughts on the Memory Loss Conference at UNCG
Yesterday spent a roller-coaster of a day at the Living Well with Memory Loss conference sponsored by the dynamically impressive Dr. Linda Buettner at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. It felt a little like trying to take a drink from a fire hydrant: so much energy, enthusiasm and expertise compressed into so little time and space. But worth it!
Noteworthy things that come to mind immediately: the incredible competence and passion with issue has ignited in presenters and audience alike. Almost everyone I heard (in the audience) admitted to having a direct personal connection to this disease and yet a powerful presentation was on the stigma felt by people with dementia and their caregivers; the fact that drug treatments can slow progression and that non-pharmacological treatments do exist and yet most people diagnosed with dementia do learn receive information about complementary therapies at the time of diagnosis. And there’s more…
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