Happy 2021

Most of us will not be sorry to say, “Good-Bye” to 2020, but if we are here to discuss it we can be grateful for the survival. With so many throughout the world succumbing to COVID19 we are lucky to be welcoming a New Year.

I wish a happy and safe new year to each of you. May your 2021 be filled with hope and success.

2021

Photos by Pixabay

The Unlived Year
Midnight strikes and the old year's gone.
We close the tablets we've written on.
And torn 'twist hope and doubt and fear,
we open the book of the unlived year!

An unlived year! Ah, stained with tears
are the well-thumbed volumes of other years!
Soiled by blunders and black regret 
are the pages we read with eyelids wet. 

But fresh in our hands once more is laid
a clean, new book by the Master made.
Unmarred are the pages lying there--
Twelve new chapters fresh and fair.

It is ours to write the daily tale,
of how we conquer - or how we fail;
Of struggle and effort and hope that makes 
like a song in the heart, when the bright day breaks.

Yes, fresh in our hands with the title clear, 
is the challenge now of an unlived year!
Author Unknown

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The Daughter’s Tale

Book Review Monday

“The Daughter’s Tale” by Armando Lucas Correa

An eighty year-old woman in New York City in 2015 receives a box of letters from long ago and seven decades of secrets spill forth. The shock of learning about her past was devastating both physically and emotionally.

At this point the story switches to her childhood in Germany in 1939 and the way her Jewish parents had saved her and her sister from the Nazis. The amazing journey takes the mother and her two daughters to the South of France where they become separated. One daughter ends up in Cuba and the other in the United States.

This story is based on true events and is an unforgettable account of love, sacrifice and survival. I recommend it.

“The Internet has been this miraculous conduit to the undeniable truth to the Holocaust.” Steven Spielberg

 

Staying Alive 6 of 6

Over the past five posts, we have reviewed some ways to achieve longevity. I have had some fun with the topic of “Staying Alive.” It seemed fitting that since I discuss death so frequently I owed you these tips on survival. Some of the content has been tongue-in-cheek, but that doesn’t mean the advice isn’t sound. It should be obvious that there are many other measures we can take to increase our chances of living longer. A few that come to mind immediately are not smoking, regular medical checkups, good nutrition, safe driving habits, and a multitude of others. 

If this series has helped you to be a little more mindful of a few ways to live a longer, healthier life, then I am happy.  All together now! Hit this link with your sound turned up:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNFzfwLM72c

 

A special thanks to the Bee Gees for helping us to wrap up “Staying Alive!”

Theme graphic by Pixabay

Staying Alive 2 of 6

OK! Now everyone has a puppy, right?

Next: Get a Female Doctor

No kidding, a study of 1.5 million hospital records proves this is a good method of “Staying Alive.” Harvard researchers reviewed and analyzed these Medicare records in 2016 and found that patients cared for by female doctors were, (A.) More likely to survive and (B.) Less likely to be readmitted within thirty days of discharge. Furthermore, “If male physicians achieved the same outcomes as female physicians” 32,000 fewer people would die each year.  

I realize these are startling claims and we all know that this is not saying that each female doctor is superior to each male doctor. What the study shows is that overall female doctors as a demographic have better outcomes. This study and others suggest that female doctors are more likely to follow clinical guidelines for care and are overall better at communicating with patients. 

Since over 50% of graduates from medical schools are women, there is no scarcity of female doctors from which to choose. 

“The good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease.” William Osler

Graphics by Pixabay