Elaine smiles big and warmly greets integrative care specialist Katie Cook Fjelstad when Katie knocks and enters her apartment at the Villa apartments at Woodbury Senior Living. Elaine is on Katie’s list for a visit this week. This usually involves a foot massage. “Katie does such a good job and it feels so good,” she […]
A Sense of Home
By Margaret Wachholz A farmer is never content until he reaps at harvest, a physician examines the effects of a medication prescribed, a soldier observes whether his bullet hit the target, a mother ensures her baby is healthy & a father evaluates if his child has grown to be a fine young man / woman. […]
The Argument of Being Alive
By Margaret Wachholz It is not possible to eliminate every source of tension & disagreement in our lives. While in the US military my daughter adopted the attitude, Bring It On! when tasked to bark out orders as a new Squad Leader. She took the stress response up as energizing vs. debilitating. The nerve-racking energy […]
What Do You Get From Giving?
By Margaret Wachholz Why do people give? Compassion, love, duty, guilt? What are the motivators that prompt us to give of our time, our money & our energy? A 2010 study found “people experienced happier moods, when they gave more money away—but only if they had a choice about how much to give.” It is […]
Live Your Life Like Bob Ross
By Margaret Wachholz When my children have difficulty falling sleep they have often tuned into Bob Ross, an icon in American artistry. I tried this one time & was so transfixed on his voice, his words, his presence – I didn’t find this treasure, Bob Ross, a sleep aid for me. I’m cognizant of my […]
Grace in an Age of Rudeness
By Margaret Wachholz Are we in tumultuous times? Have you experienced a lack of empathy from a supervisor, an employee, been passed over for promotion; experiencing behaviors from your church or community that are less than stellar—that it leaves you feeling isolated, angry, depressed, anxious—people are feeling the strain. It’s not a great feeling when […]
Be You and the World Will Adjust
By Margaret Wachholz Does anyone ever want to socialize with negative people? Complaining and criticizing works for many folks. I hear teachers say many children have turned to anger as their “go-to” in order to get needs met. (Get called out for questionable behavior and scream or holler, and maybe folks will back off.) This […]
Moxie In Aging
By Margaret Wachholz Stinky cheese, scotch, some wine and my old shed all seem to improve with age. Delightful encounters await you in your golden years, according to our elders—and they have lived long enough to know. Fashion No more fashion police when you’re older. Some want to keep things looking like they did in […]
This Holiday Season, Savor the Slowness
There are so many things to do this time of year: concerts, work parties, entertaining—an exquisite yet exhausting sensory overload. So, it’s not a bad idea to stop and collect ourselves over a beer or a coffee. The ever-civilized British would serve you, in the good old days, not so much as a toothpick that […]
Woodbury Senior Living staff members receive awards
Two Woodbury Senior Living staff members, Sherri Lage and Katie Cookfjelstad, will receive awards this fall from the Care Providers of Minnesota association. The awards will be presented at the Care Provider’s November 2019 convention. Expertise in aging and dementia Our memory care director Sherri Lage will be given the 2019 Dedicated Service Award, recognizing […]
