ruthjimward@gmail.com In the wee hours of the last day of 2022, I was rudely awakened by an unusually painful calf-cramp. When the normal few steps failed to walk it out, I crawled back in bed hoping the pain would subside by morning. No such luck and a ball…
ruthjimward@gmail.com The word discretionary rolled around in my brain for several days. Personally, I had one definition--money that wasn’t earmarked, like the bill tucked in whatever purse I carry just in case it might be needed. In taking an informal poll the meaning of discretionary, I received…
ruthjimward@gmail.com Funambulism, discovered in research, is the formal word for tightrope walking, the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Acrophobic (fear of crowds, open areas) the dizzying feat for seasoned…
ruthjimward@gmail.com Getting ready to leave after a large class, a classmate and I became engaged in sharing what we did at home before coming to our very early class. When I said that I listen to music while I eat breakfast, she said, “I also tune in to…
ruthjimward@gmail.com Amusing and insightful email responses highlighting the scars of favoritism and questionable favors influenced my decision for follow-up to offer additional ideas and wisdom for parents and grandparents in detecting and avoiding those pitfalls and perhaps acknowledging unintentional former poor judgment. I liked your mom's…
ruthjimward@gmail.com After apologizing for missing an appointment and attempting to find a new date on my calendar to hear the tech say, “You’re taking too long”, my first reaction was, “Well, I’m certainly not his favorite,” It had been a good while since I had experienced…
Patience: bearing provocation, annoyance, misfortune, delay, hardship, pain with fortitude and calm and without complaint, anger, or the like. Quietly and steadily persevering or diligent, especially in detail or exactness, was first recorded 1275-1325. The gals in Bible study discussed how our society hinges on instant gratification of deliveries of…
First known use of the word accountability was in 1750 with the meaning willingness or obligation to explain one's actions or to admit being the cause of a problem: Synonyms: answerability, blame, fault, liability, responsibility. Since our lives from toddler to older adults revolve around the various mentors…