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Year Four, Day 60: The Leaf and The Beginning of My Odyssey



I watched a leaf fall yesterday. I stood mesmorised on the sidewalk, and watched as it drifted slowly to the ground. It was a lovely shade of magenta. I picked it up and wrapped it in a tissue and put it in my purse.

I felt this was one of those profound moments in my life.  I have felt quite anxious, restless and slightly depressed lately.  I hang onto so much negativity from my past and this tree showed me that letting go can be very beautiful. And it also reminded me of change. I've always said that I love change, but lately I felt I feel a little stagnant.

I seem to always be  struggling with my weight and lately my health.

As a way of self-soothing, I spend entirely too much time with mindless activities like social media or my game of choice Words With Friends. Or I eat.

I absolutely cherish my time with my granddaughter, Grace. But I don't want her to think she has a boring old grandma. And I don't want her to grow up like so many kids just staring at a screen. There's so much to experience and learn in this world. I don't know how much time I have left, but I doknow that I am  not financially capable of traveling the world.

However,  I am able to travel the world of my imagination! I've always been a book lover, but I've not spent enough time on the classics.  The ones that really stretch your mind. The ones that give you that "brain pain" that  I tell my students about. Sometimes learning is a bit painful.  "No pain, no gain!"

Today, I have decided what I want to do with the remaining years of my life. I want to get caught up with my reading!

When I first got my Kindle years ago, I was traveling back and forth from Portland to Salem and I wanted to spend my time reading. I decided I was going to read all the classics. However I got lazy and tired and ended up either napping on the train or looking at social media. Sometimes I blogged. That was a worthy accomplishment.

But mostly I napped.

I will be turning 57 in January, and I feel like lately I've been just treading water. My goal has been for the last few years to lose weight and get healthy. And that has been the driving force behind this blog.

I still need to do keep on with my original goals.  But losing weight and exercising, doesn't really require that much thinking. Especially since I have done some research and I have developed some good habits. I just need to keep it up!

I've always said to my children they need exercise their body, mind and spirit daily.

It is time to get back to my mind! And I've always been proud of my intellect. But there is so much more to learn.

In the wee hours this morning I popped up with a light bulb over my head. I could almost see it! Like the one you see in a cartoon.

I had a brilliant idea! I could use my time more wisely, develop my brain further, and avoid being annoyed by this world by reading classic literature. This will be a great way to use my time on my commute!

And I could also read some classics to my granddaughter when when I babysit her!

So I went online and looked up some list of "books you should read before you die". I've seen many of those lists. After perusing a few, I found one to my liking below. I prefer this one because it includes many more Classics than some of the other lists. I read a lot of contemporary literature, and I enjoyed much of it but I want the painful ancient texts that really broaden my mind and help me to understand life more and maybe remove myself from my own petty suffering!

Note: I've changed lists! The previous link I posted was bad. So I did some research and found a much better list!
https://www.listchallenges.com/100-classic-books-challenge


I even posted my intention on Facebook this morning. Most excited was I!

I just hope no one took my post personally.

This is what I said:

Hi friends!
Are you weary of the silly, shallow and sometimes hostile tone of social media posts?
I am.
I've decided to use my time more wisely. I am going to catch up on my reading! Particularly the classics.
There are many lists of books you "need to read before you die".
I chose the list below because it spans a great period of time. I've read a few books on this list, but I was a much younger person.
It will be interesting if I find more meaning in this later, more seasoned stage of my life.
Anyone else on board?
I'm beginning with Homer's Odyssey today!

Sigh.  I can only hope people are not as sensitive as I.
On that note, I need to fly. I have piano classes to teach and an "Odyssey" to begin!

Talk to you soon!

Love,

Zita

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