Skip to main content

That which makes us young again…

One evening last week my big black lab and I headed out for a hike at one of our favourite provincial parks. After an invigorating climb through trails up and down steep hills, poor Bailey was quite worn out. As he quickly approaches the 10 year mark in his life, we are seeing his age sneak up on him. He sleeps for much of the day, getting up after a long nap is quite laborious for him and his back legs are strained under all 120 lbs of him.

After the trek in the woods, we headed down to the river for a dip to cool off. Although he is a gorgeous water dog, these days his uncertainty in his back legs prevents him from leaping into the water for that well deserved swim. I have to lead him into the water until it is deep enough and then swim with him. This was really therapeutic for both of us. I do adore him so.

Following the swim I got out, dried off and grabbed my book. I settled in at the river’s edge for a good read, but what happened next took me from my reading. Bailey found friends in the frogs. His whole energy changed. It was brilliant. My heart was light and my breathing made easy to watch one of my best friends acting this young and childish again. His whole body was youthfully wagging, his ears were perked with childish giddy and his tail was wiling his new friends on, “play with me”.

As I sat there and watched him play in the river, the old adage came to mind "You are as young as you feel" and I reflected on the things in life that make me feel younger.

Swimming – Anywhere, but preferable in the lake. River swimming is fun as the current pushes you along, ocean swimming is refreshing and awe inspiring, lake swimming is my favourite, in particular, Lake Ontario. Don’t forget to take in some skinny dipping whenever you can.

Listening to music – and sing along too.

Flirting –It is harmless and can really lift both parties involved. Keep it innocent and friendly and always stay in control of your behavior. Flirting can reduce your stress, boost your confidence and make you feel young and attractive.

Watching fireworks - whilst lying on the grass with your best friend.

Spending time with elders – this is certainly a win-win. The stories you will come away with are priceless and the history is quite remarkable. Thank you, Ted.

Watching comedies - Although he is infamous, I love watching Woody Allen. He is clever and neurotic.

New love - the kind where you feel like you can do anything! Whether you are just falling into love, or rediscovering it with your longtime lover, love makes your heart young.

Being completely ridiculous – going nuts until my teenagers have to give in and laugh hysterically.

These are just to name a few. Feel free to add to this list. What makes you feel young again?
Youthfully,
Janet
Labels:

Comments

  1. CynthsSeptember 22, 2009

    What a beautiful list, Janet! I agree about the fireworks! Somehow I feel so young and carefree when I watch the fireworks in New Year's eve.

    Another thing that makes me feel young is being with my parents and brother. I feel that I am protected.

    Spending time with my daughter also makes me feel young. We shop together for girly stuff like stationery and glittery pens and anything pink! haha.

    This is a lovely post, really. Why don't you tag other bloggers to do a post like this its very refreshing.I felt happy reading this post, thanks Janet!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Marc LathamSeptember 22, 2009

    Yes, lovely post Janet, a story in itself.

    Great to hear about Buddy getting excited again. Our old dog used to similarly look tired all the time near the end, but would still perk up when she heard 'walkies'.

    I guess running is my biggest youth elixir at the moment, especially as it's going well at the moment. Or getting out hiking: back to nature.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Janet JarrellSeptember 22, 2009

    Thank you Cynthia. I am really not sure how to tag things - but I do look forward to feed back on this one - and I see you did something similar in August - I enjoyed that one!

    Marc - after I posted this, I thought about running too. The getting started isn't easy for me, but once things get into a rhythm, I am happy. We share the love of hiking for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Kenia CrisSeptember 22, 2009

    Just loved to hear about it. Your dog is simply CUTE! I'll follow you and write about the things that make me feel young again.

    I love coming and reading about you and your life, it's just great to discover we have so many things we have in common, you'll see in my post.

    Thank you for your kind comments and e-mails.
    Much love from Brazil.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

One Day I Saw Ty Conn

(This is being recalled from a very young mind...) When my father would begin telling a story from his childhood, he would begin with “When I was a little girl…” which would cause an uproar of high pitched objections from my sisters and myself. He would simply smile and continue on, as he now had our complete attention. I started this post at the beginning of November of this year when thoughts of my father return annually on the anniversary of his birthday. This story, however, is not about my father… When I was a little girl, I lived in a small house on Pine Street with my father, mother and three sisters. Ours was a busy, full house. Lisa was the oldest, very beautiful and very bossy. Pam was next, also very beautiful and we envied her fashion sense. I was the third in the line of my sisters, a middle child that cried a lot, made funny faces and was very comfortable at the centre of attention. My little sister, Joanne, enjoyed the status of being the baby in the family. She wa...
16 comments
Read more

Keith Cornell - Artist

Madawaska Church Claire Connolly, Assistant Manager Arts on King and Queen, describes Keith's work as 'Ontario, rugged landscape at it’s best'. Keith Cornell was raised in the small town of Uxbridge, Ontario. His father died during the war when Keith was very young, leaving his mother to raise him alongside his two brothers. Growing up in this quaint little town tucked beside farmland and beautiful forests, Keith would begin his life work painting everything around him. He recounts time and again a solid memory he has a very young boy. The Canadian artist David Milne had set up his easel to paint a scene in Keith’s neighbourhood, and the boy watched with fascination as the artist worked plein air. The affect of this experience is timeless. Keith did not pick up the brush and start painting right away, but that time was coming. Late Afternoon Go Home Bay During his high school years, Keith met his future wife, Karen.   For his sixteenth birthda...
2 comments
Read more

San Murata and the The Truth about Art

Skating on St Lawrence san-murata.com Anyone who meets San Murata knows that he is someone whom you won’t soon forget. Lively, charismatic and honest; he is certainly a true reflection of his art. He currently lives in the small historic town of Grafton where he loves to paint the beautiful Northumberland countryside. He also enjoys spending time in Quebec during the colder months to paint. The painting on the front cover is a scene from winter, one of the things San says he likes most about Canada, particularly in Quebec. San grew up in Japan, with admittedly a stricter social system, which encourages all children to work hard in school and go to university. San’s father was a banker and wanted his children to be professionals, so San studied at the University of Musashi in Tokyo, and although he says he wasn’t the best student, he graduated with a degree in Economics. He, too, worked at a banking job but it was always his dream to one day be an artist. In the late 60’s...
Post a Comment
Read more