March 31, 2024

The View

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , |
Leave a Comment 

It’s Easter Morning.

The view from my desk this morning … The sun comes up on the Dartmouth side and is reflected across the Bedford Basin. the beginning of a new day.

I participated in a writers’ workshop last Sunday at Nimbus Publishing. I really enjoyed meeting new people and sharing my writing story. It still doesn’t include enough fiction. I am slowly gaining the courage to write and publish stories from what I know. It feels a little scary to write stories. The characters and the experiences have to come from my own life and my fear is that someone who knows me might think I am writing about them and take offence … or feel proud to be included? My characters will come from a treasure trove of characters that I have met over the past 60+10 years.

I have travelled and worked and visited many places in many cultural settings. I have met people who may be at their worst in Mediation situation or during workplace conflict. I have also celebrated joyful and sorrowful events with many people. The Characters I CREATE will become amalgomations of many peoples’ character and will behave the way I imagine that they would in the circumstances that I IMAGINE for them.

This coming weekend I will attend a READ TREAT where some of my favourite Nova Scotia Authors will do readings of their latest works. There will be time for Fireside Chats and opportunities to Mix and Mingle and down time to walk the beaches (my very favourite thing to do.) I am looking for the inspiration and the courage to write and to finish “Dear Madelyn” as a work of Fiction, freeing my self form the rigours of EXTENSIVE research. Of course the facts have to be true but the stories can wander a little.

The cover of my journal has a Hemingway quote on it. It reads “In order to write about life first you have to live it.” I have lived many different lives. I have 3 score and 10 years under my belt. Time to write.

 

March 31, 2024

Last Day in Hawaii

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized | Tags: , , , |
Leave a Comment 

Written February 19th .. Before the harrowing trip home…

Aloha, everyone. Today is our last full day in Hawaii … for this year. I
am already looking forward to next year. I love this place. Even though we had
a few unfortunate circumstances, everything has worked out for the best. Golfed
twice. Snorkelled in two different locations. Lots of pool and beach time.
Sunny days, an earthquake and 30-foot swells. It is always interesting.

Things are changing here the way they are everywhere else. Businesses close
or change ownership and name. Prices increase. Traffic increases. The number of
people here on the Big Island feels like more than in other years. Things are
also staying the same. The wonderful weather and the aloha spirit live on.

The highlight for me was the snorkelling trip we took with Sea Paradise. I
love sailboats and this gorgeous catamaran was under sail for the trip back. I
felt something greater than the nervousness I usually feel when I snorkel. A
calm, peaceful excitement settled in as I watched a manta swim directly under
me. It was so wonderful to be in the ocean and see its wonders so clearly.

And the whales!! A mother and baby on the way out. The crew estimated the
baby was 2 or 3 days old. And four or five show-offs trying to out-breach each
other for 10 minutes, jumping right out of the water on the way back.
Thrilling. The whole 5-hour tour was exquisite.

The ocean was very present when we golfed right on the shores of the biggest
water hazard in the world. During our second round, it was angry. Waves
crashing sending spray 5 stories high. It was exhilarating. It didn’t improve
my putting though.

All of this happened while my dear friends in Halifax dealt with not one but
two snowstorms of record proportion, five feet over three days. That’s a lot of
snow and then, days later, another foot or more.

Back in Alberta tomorrow. Already planning to come back to this magical
place soon.

ALOHA.

 

 

January 20, 2024

Keep the Blazes at it!

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized
Leave a Comment 
It’s January 20, 2024. In my 71st year, my life is good. I look back on things that have happened with a different perspective, and I find that there are opportunities not taken that might have changed the course. I have met with the communications departments of large national companies and went ill-prepared for the meeting, not interested in the gig. I have joined golf clubs and country clubs and have not taken full advantage of the schmoozing opportunities to find interesting and lucrative work. I have followed my instincts and I have ended up in a great place with no regrets. Introspection is good but when you are out of the industry and enjoying retirement, it can be humbling. My accomplishments are modest. I hope that I have made a difference in some people’s lives and that I can continue to do that in this next phase through writing and blogging and creating online learning experiences, and videos that will last forever. This week I sent the final content pages on Relational Intelligence, Skills, and Knowledge to Andrew, at At the HELM. Now I wait. I remind myself that it’s a draft. That is written on my whiteboard. “It’s just a draft.” It took six weeks to go through the library of my life’s work, to sort out the pieces that would fit, to write the pieces that were more suited to a nautical theme and to let go of the draft. Intellectually and emotionally the experience could have been draining and at times I think it was. Mostly it was humbling. To review ALL the I have written in that way lets you see your contribution. I am not finished. I am excited for RISK to find a following. I believe there is a book there and I know that I am in a place where I can review Mapping the Space Between Us and prepare to publish it. That was another missed opportunity. It needs finishing. With a little help, I can meet my new self-imposed deadline … June 2024. Wish me luck and poke me once in a while with a gentle reminder to keep the blazes at it.
 

January 2, 2024

Welcome to 2024

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized
[2] Comments 

Somehow 2024 seems like a long time in the future, yet here we are. I remember when 2020 seemed a very long time in the future.  What catches me is that 2020 happened 24 years AGO. Hard to believe when you’ve lived through it all. Changes upon changes. Sigh.

Norm and I had COVID over Christmas. What a drag. We were both quite sick and are still not at 100% recovery. It wasn’t just us.  Many people spent the Christmas season fighting the many variants we have come to know. I’m not sure what to think about that.  We stayed in Nova Scotia so that we could spend time with relatives here and eventually we got to do that.  Deliveries from masked friends and relatives allowed us to cook a small turkey and open presents on the 25th.

I also had time to spend on my decluttering project. I read and sorted old files, courses, and articles I had written, my life’s work. Much of it will be repurposed for the next project.  I think we have found a catchy name for it. “RISK Taking” or “Why take the RISK?” RISK is of course an acronym.  Relational Intelligence, Skills, and Knowledge.  This 10-module self-paced program will be coming to you in the new year through a partnership with “At the Helm.” https://atthehelm.ca I am excited by this new challenge. It is good to be back at the keyboard.

I do hope that all of you had a good holiday season and that you all have things to look forward to in 2024. Whatever it brings, this year provides new opportunities to start again, to reimagine what is possible for each of us. Look at what you want to have, be or do. See that others have or are or do that thing and ask yourself… Why not me?

I always resolve to be a better version of myself in January. My New Year’s resolutions list includes …

#1 Only write on the days you eat. #2 Zumba three times a week. #3 Eat only food that was once alive #4 Get lots of rest. #5 Feed your mind, heart, body, spirit, and soul daily.

That should keep me busy.  What does 2024 hold for you?

Take care, my friends, and Happy New Year 2024

 

December 20, 2023

STEW

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized
Comments Off on STEW 

Subscribe to continue reading

Subscribe to get access to the rest of this post and other subscriber-only content.

 

December 12, 2023

If a Miracle Happened

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized
Leave a Comment 

Learn more(opens in a new tab)

It feels like a miracle. So many people have reached out to connect. I am so grateful for all of the lovely comments on the Facebook page, the notes on LinkedIn and the comments on WordPress. I am overwhelmed by the response, and I would like to thank all of you. People from every aspect of my former lives are represented in the comments I have read. Halifax, St Albert, Grande Cache and Calgary are all represented. Colleagues and friends from teaching, mediating, curling, tap dancing, family, friends, clients, coworkers and bosses are all in the mix. I am humbled and grateful. Thank you.

That question … the one that starts with “If a miracle happened, how would you know?” … is a question I learned in the 90s and one that has stayed with me. I don’t often ask myself that question. I do not remember ever asking myself that specific one. It seems that Christmas is a good time of year to ask it. What would a miracle look like for me in this 60-10th year of life? A comfortable life? Check. A wonderful, loving partner? Check. A family who are happy and healthy and who make me very proud? Check. A project to work on? Check. Friends and family to play games, to laugh and tell stories with? Check. Someone to read my blogs? CHECK.

Life can be difficult. It can be therapeutic to consider how it could be better. What are the measures of wellness and happiness for you in your life? What is your miracle? Draw that picture and then ask yourself how you can get one step closer to that miracle. Check for evidence of the miracle. Make a list and check it twice. I have heard that others do that this time of year. (wink) (old school emoji) (smile)

Life is good.

What is your miracle? How will you know it has happened?

 

December 9, 2023

Christmas is coming …

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized | Tags: |
Leave a Comment 

Thank you to those who took the time to react to my first post in a long time. I appreciate your time and attention. As some of you mentioned, life is good for me right now. I agree. Halifax has become a growing metropolis with different problems than it had when I was growing up here. It is stretched to the proverbial limit. Growing fast and still able to retain its historic charm. Norm and I have seen a play at the Neptune Theatre and a concert at the Rebecca Cohn Theatre. We have walked and dined on the new and much improved waterfront. We have golfed at some of the surrounding golf courses and we have breakfast on Sundays at the Chebucto Inn with wonderful friends from my high school days here in Halifax. Next on the list is a Moosehead’s Game at the Scotiabank Centre.


I see my cousins and my golf buddies for lunch every now and then at restaurants that are becoming my favourites. We never run out of stories to tell or laughter to share. I spend time in Mahone Bay where cousin Danielle has opened yet another fabulous eatery. First it was Betty’s at the Kitch’inn and now its Eli and Trix. I can highly recommend both restaurants and the Kitch’inn which she describes as “Not your grandmother’s B and B.” My mother would love her and what she has become. She would describe her as a going concern and I agree. My mother would also be pleased that I have been spending time with her nieces. She cared a lot about them and their families.


Christmas is coming and for the first time in a very long time I will be staying here in Halifax for the holidays. We will spend time with Norm’s family here in Halifax and ‘up the Valley’ as they say around here and with friends and family of mine. I will miss the physical presence of my girls and their families but we will connect in the same way that many of you will be connecting with family. People are able to cross distances differently today than we did when I was a kid here in Halifax. The girls and I ( and their families from time to time) ‘meet’ on Facetime on Fridays and holidays and we will be together in person again soon when Norm and I head back to Alberta.


My Christmas wish is that Norm and I take a walk along a rocky beach with the waves crashing and the salt air hitting our faces. The ocean called me back to this magical place. I like to take advantage of opportunities to be close to its main attraction as often as possible. One of my favourite quotes explains the attraction; “Eternity begins and ends with the ocean’s tides.” Spending time near the ocean, even in winter, soothes the soul and puts things in perspective. It is a stark contrast with the hubbub of shopping centres and traffic jams at this time of year.


Whatever your Holiday Wish, I do hope it comes true for you.
n

 

December 7, 2023

If you’re out there …

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , |
[6] Comments 

Hello again world.

Speaking to you from my new office with the most spectacular view of the Bedford Basin. My life has morphed once more. I am back working on a project for At the Helm. It is exhilarating and frustrating at the same time. It requires that I spend hours and hours going through old blogs and files to find the exact wording for the modules I am creating. The good news is that there are treasures buried in those old pieces of work.

Today, for example, I was looking through comments on past posts and found two from my Dad. He was a wise man who always championed me and gave me a kick in the butt when I needed it. I miss him a lot. The other good news is that I have someone in my life who fills that role. Norm is my new life partner and he makes me laugh and reminds me to complete what I start and to workout and to feel good about how lucky I am.

Life is different when you meet someone after you have both retired. You have so much time to get to know each other. We were spending lots of time together as a dating couple so after a year we decided to move in together in a beautiful apartment with a view. The transition has been easier than one might think. He and I are so similar in our values and in our habits. We travel well together and we both enjoy travelling. Live theatre and music are important to both of us. We both golf and work out or go for a walk every day. A focus on Physical Fitness is an important part of our roommate agreement. We have a running tournament of King’s Cribbage. One might say that we enjoy each other’s company. Life is good.

It is also good to be back working on a project. The creative juices need an outlet. My friends paint or quilt and are busy creating gifts for grandkids, family and friends. I have written stories for my grandkids but they lack the physical aspect, the evidence of time spent to create them. They are not likely to frame a piece of writing or throw it on their bed to keep them warm. That’s okay. I will continue to write and at some point, when their lives slow down, my family may read and be proud of the “Far Away Grancy.”

I have no idea who will receive this blog. If you are out there and you are reading this please let me know.

 

November 15, 2023

Welcome Back

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under Life is like that...., Social Exchange
Leave a Comment 

I have been in Alberta for the last 6 weeks catching up with family and friends, clearing the past from my condo and preparing to head back to Nova Scotia for a while. We’ll be back again soon. This routine of having two places to be can be taxing but as I move into and accept being 60-10, I appreciate the fact that I can move about the country and travel. I have lost a lot of friends and relatives over the past few years. I’m guessing that through this difficult stretch for human kind that you may have as well. AND I must admit that I feel like Nate Bargatze when he says … “I am from the 1900s and I am living in the future”.

My grandson visited the other day. I gave him the original handwritten version of a book I wrote for his high school graduation. He was having trouble deciding who to be. I imagined a world for him set in 2025. I love writing speculative fiction. You can let your imagination move the world forward. In his story he had lots of gadgets and screens and access to hockey arena’s or other venues and commercial air travel just by having the the barcode in his phone or on his iwrist. No security or ticket takers. You just walk in and sit in your assigned spot. If its not your spot and alarm warns you to go to your spot.

Most of what I described in the book has moved into our future. It is weird to think that we have actually moved beyond many people’s imaginations into a world they no longer recognize. I feel that way sometimes, but then I remember that before there were Blogs I couldn’t imagine life with blogs and yet here we are. Over the years I have generated more than 300 blogs and I have a few followers which is nice. Over the next little while, as I get back into creating programs in yet another package of Modules to help leaders speak and listen differently, I notice the speed of change in technology, in skills and knowledge and attitudes. I am comforted by the sameness I find in human nature.

Humans can be nothing but human. They slide on a spectrum from heroic to completely dysfunctional and different triggers impact their sense of worth these days but human behaviour remains predictable. The signs for us to understand where someone is coming from remain telling and if we speak and listen with courage and curiousity we can still build rapport and relationship … even in a disconnected world.

 

January 16, 2022

TEACHING as LEARNING

Posted by Dr. Nancy Love under SHIFT Happens, Social Exchange
Leave a Comment 

This week I began teaching a class at a local university. I assigned a Blog Post topic to the class and have been reading the students’ entries this morning. The topic was Ethics. I allowed them to decide the approach they would take and invited them to either create their own blog site or to just send me the paragraphs that would make up a post if they did have a Blog Site of their own. I was impressed by the diversity of approaches I received for this assignment. Some talked generally about the subject of ethics and others looked at business ethics exploring the ideas from the text. My hope is that the students in this class learn a little bit more about themselves and each other in the course. I hope to learn more about communication in this digital age as seen through their eyes. I think we are off to a good start.

 

Next Page »