The Amazing Brain

It's all about the choices we make!

Our brain was designed to process decisions regarding how to respond to complex situations, how to deal with the toxic effects of stress, how to respond to the demands of caring for our bodies, and marry these choices with our emotions. This section will try to provide you with more informed choices about how certain things affect us, so you can navigate your way to a more happy and fulfilled life.

Crazy about School

Thursday November 3, 2011.

Going back to school later in life can help keep the mind active and keep you connected to people you wouldn't normally interact with. It can be a positive experience that helps you stay mentally fit.

Tips for the older person going back to school:

Don’t kill yourself studying for the entrance tests

You didn’t just graduate from high school yesterday so be real. Even though you once may have taken all the advanced math classes, 20 years later you may need to review Algebra. So what!

Be honest about what you can do

If your circumstances suddenly change during the semester and you see that you can’t finish a class without a lot of pain and stress – just drop the class.

Don’t forget why you are taking a class

If your goal is to learn something new or to just have fun and something keeps you from meeting your goal, then handle it. For instance, if you sign up for a class with a teacher who is either not good, or is not nice, simply drop the course and try to take the course with another teacher later.

Enjoy yourself

Going back to school can be fun so allow yourself to make that happen.

The Joy of Song

Tuesday October 4, 2011

When I was younger I was embarrassed to sing. Part of the reason was I had always demanded perfection of myself and my singing didn’t make the ranks. One day when I was driving home in the midst of ecstasy because I finally left the worse relationship of my life, I heard a song that touched my soul and I spontaneously burst into song. I am sure I didn’t sound very good. I am certain I didn’t know all the words at the time. But in that moment, I realized I had been missing out on something that calls to the very core of our human nature – singing!

My young children were in the back seat. The look on their face was priceless! They were stunned and confused, perhaps horrified that I was singing. Thank God they weren’t teenagers or else the ending to this story wouldn’t have been as cool.

Later, I put together a CD of songs and suddenly felt empowered to sing when I felt the urge. After a week or two, I started hearing little voices in the back seat join in. It was truly a bonding moment I will never forget.