The Momsey's Fourth Anniversary

It is the fourth anniversary of 'The Momsey Blog'. To my audience, I thank you so much. There were times I wanted to quit. The 'well' was going dry. I didn't expect to be here, this long. The Momsey Blog has transformed even me. I have learned much from the words that have graced my pages, a site created by my son, and his girlfriend, my editor, without whose talents, The Momsey would simply be a dancing fool moving in the living room with 'Ella' as my partner.

The web is an incredible tool, a forum for all things wonderful, funny, informative, scary and delicious. 'Google university' opens up our minds to new ideas, to new ways of doing things and thoughts never imagined or expressed. It is not a training ground but a changing map upon which to understand and learn about things real or imagined. It is a beginning, not an end. The web is meant to shake us up because some of us are complacent about what we think we know to be true. The truth of information can change over time. Growing up, truth came in the form of adults only: teachers and parents. There was never a 'third' party. I am an adult now. I know some things, not everything. The web helps to shake us up.

Over the past two years, I learned that kitties know things, too. We are their emissaries, only. No amount of 'training' can change their minds. They listen to their bodies only. We are loving, committed window dressing to them, that is all. In 2014, our Tiggy was dying, with her hyperthyroid condition, the accomplice. She ate the wrong foods, over many months, changing her diet, in favour of the foods she loved but were also killing her slowly. She listened to her body, as it vomited, over many months. She was doing it her way! As she regained her strength and dignity, Tiggy began to return to a new normal. She realized that Greek yogurt and her special diet were right for her.

I realize that dogs are incredibly stable 'people'. They never seem to have a bad day. Their daily needs are simple and focused: fetching, chewing, play, raw fruit/veg., morsels of yummy, water, and dog food. They change our minds often, if we are paying close attention. ... Then fermentation sparked my interest when Lucy began making sauerkraut at home. It took me places where I had not envisioned. It was the elixir of health and life. I had forgotten making it at home, as a child. My mom was the director of operations. Then I learned about commercially made white bread whose vast network of additives, preservatives tinkered with our health objectives, in serious ways. We were all gaining weight. Women more than men. The Momsey's mind began to realize the miracle of the web, again and again. Then came the biggest shock of all: those funny looking things in a tomato, I saw one day and wrote about. This strange phenomenon  happened again, three more times, in a span of many months. Oh, my. I wondered if this was an ''unintended consequence'' of GMO. Maybe. Then Ace Bakery began to change to Non-GMO Verified. Campbell Soup was following suit in similar ways by labelling their products GMO. The buying consumers were real people with real concerns. They mattered to ACE and Campbell's.  Governments need to realize they are in power for the people – not for themselves. Labelling was a right, not up for discussion. Non-GMO Verified is gaining acceptance, everywhere, in the food aisle.

I am eating less bread, more fat. It's the way to go according to three doctors, all of whom have published books explaining why. And it makes so much sense, really. Sugars and starches are in desserts and are found naturally in mother nature's garden. Safe starches are potatoes and rice. Desserts feed a comfort need not a nutritional one. But now the carbohydrates - sugars and starches - are put in everything we buy, with such deliberation. Why? To eat more recklessly? Appetites are triggered. Then we crave. Not good for us, good for the companies whose profit margins soar. Oh My. We must read the labels and visit the produce aisle, often. The secret to longevity lies there amongst the green, orange, blue, yellow, red and purple. The costs are low compared to the alternative: poor health and medication to correct our poor food choices. (Highly processed, calorie dense foods take their toll on us in so many ways.) ... Apples nix cravings and hunger, protect the lungs, provide us with muscle building ursolic acid and other valuable things. An apple a day was true! ... Once upon a time, grapefruit juice was the secret to weight loss. I know. I was a follower, then. Now, I know it is much more than that. It must be 'homemade' not store made. And other things matter, too. We were told to eat low fat, fat free. Wrong, again! Healthy fats are our friend, always have been, critical for the absorption of vitamins, A, D, E, K. A 'balanced' diet is the name of the health and financial game. So is dancing. Moving the body is the secret to health, longevity and learning success.

The spry 'young' 106-year-old lady, in the elegant suit, was meeting the president for the first time. She was as excited as she could be. “What's your secret?” the first lady asked. “Just keep moving” and moving she did. Such enthusiasm and optimism in spite of life's hardships. She was contagious! We need to connect more with each other - in person. Close down the screens and look into the eyes of a loved one or friend. Share a laugh, an apple and dance. Let us return to common sense. We all have it. Keep it simple, low cost and homemade. Now, that's a future!

French Immersion and More!

In Canada, officially bilingual, a French Immersion education is a prized program for many parents, in all parts of the country. Has the time arrived, perhaps, to include other languages, such as mandarin, beginning by age 2? Some educators think so. By the age of 3, we've learned, a child's word-count can easily top one million, depending upon the environment in which he lives. Would a second language thrown into the mix amount to another million words that the child could amass in his 'foreign' language vocabulary?

With language, we have structure (grammar), vocabulary, comprehension, fluency, pronunciation and conversation, these profound academic milestones of the developing human 'plastic' brain. Is it ever too early to begin immersion in a new language? ... In learning a new language, a better, stronger brain is created by virtue of it being stimulated to produce these new 'foreign' sounds. In learning a musical instrument or composing a song, different parts of the brain are worked. In much the same way as musical 'training', speaking any language begins to reconfigure the brain as these audible 'modes of communication' become the building blocks of stored memory, ideas and thought. If dogs are able to associate words and phrases with actions and gestures, then teaching a child one or more new languages is far more easily done. ... Throughout the course of my day with Mr. Wiggles and his sister, Sally, language is all I have to communicate with them. My furry children are a foreign species, learning a 'foreign' language called English. I adore these creatures but speak to them with a certain 'expectation' of understanding me, using language. I endeavour to teach them. “Listen to me or go to your room.”, I say. Ha. Ha. Hand gesturing and the accompanying words help convey meaning in their everyday doggy world. “Go back”, “Do you want to eat?” “Are you hungry?” “Do you want breakfast?' “Do you want eggs?” “Is it apple time?” “Where's the ball?”, “Lie down”, “Take the ball or Rudy, (the reindeer) to daddy'. They cannot speak but understand what is expected of them. Daily reminders of the spoken word aids in building the foundation of dialogue and language.

Our retriever pups know when Mall Cop and Ella are coming to visit. I simply tell them. Their heads turn in the direction of past visits from their cousins: the front door and side door. The carpet bedding is prepared in my clean-up dog and cat world. This action reminds them something special is about to happen. They recognize the car as the 'sound' approaches. I put words to what they hear. The abstract of thought resonates with them. They look towards the door or outside, beyond the glass doors of their room, to see if their cousins have arrived. With all four dogs, the language I speak is understood by all. (The coupling of abstract thought with real everyday objects/places are imperatives in the learning game for dogs.) A gentle touch on the head, back or paw attaches significance to their learning game. ... Mall Cop, this 20-pound dynamo, tilts his head from side to side, his gaze unmoved, wondering if maybe, just maybe, a fruit and veggie platter is being served soon. Ella, his little sister, waits patiently to see what I will do next. Not quite yet, my sweet little one. Mall Cop stares and hopes for the dream. I understand and act accordingly. The  familiar platter is brought, for all to enjoy. Children and animals are attuned to the language they speak to one another. They are one with each other.

Growing up, I was fascinated by language, yet my parents spoke only English to their children: my two brothers and me. ... Regardless of my attempts to change her mind, my mom continued to speak in the language of Canada, the country to which she had immigrated, years earlier as a teen. Though I could read Ukrainian and attended 'school' on Saturdays, I never spoke it fluently or understood its meaning, very well. How could I? My parents rarely spoke the language of their birth country. (Socializing brings context to language.) Being bilingual is a highly developed skill, honed over a lifetime of daily social moments. As a high school student, I was entranced by two languages - Latin and French - in my tough eight-credit final grade 13 year. In those times, English was a mandated two-part subject called literature and composition. It is odd how I struggled in both, yet came alive, as if by magic, in French or Latin class, where speaking these languages was expected.

If we are to ignite a child's learning potential, languages should be a part of his learning from the beginning. The child must be encouraged to speak for this simple act is the beginning of thought!The act of listening and speaking has a dramatic effect on thought processing, problem-solving, attention and memory. The brain gets a workout. Let us not worry about how to start language instruction. Simply speaking the words of any language aids in its burgeoning mastery. I look to Mr. Wiggles and Sally for verification here as I am reminded daily of the power of language on them. ... Music is another 'foreign' language, the child's earliest form of communication. As babies, our children are introduced to lullabies, poetry set to music. ... (Within days of his premature birth, our first-born son had a music box, his first toy, placed inside his incubator to help soothe and comfort him in the healing process.) Language can both soothe and comfort through storytelling dialogue, over and over again. Imagine having the tools to retell a story, in many different languages, day after day, time after time.

The web has bestowed upon us the greatest tool to ever exist. We now have access to the world, a place never envisioned in Momsey's day. We must be ready. The 'walls' today, are not rigid but 'permeable' membranes that afford us untold opportunities to move beyond the boundaries of yesterday using language. ... All things begin with a word, phrase or simple sentence. Words enable us to learn about life, to put meaning into it and let those words take us into the future. When or how we start learning language is much less important then simply starting. To quote the American first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, “The way to begin is to begin.” There is no disputing that simple fact.