Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
Ageism is incorrect. I checked my wedding certificate
and there is no expiry date on mine so that's why I felt quite
confident. Humor can build bridges and it
can also destroy bridges, so we've got to be careful that
(00:23):
we're lifting people up with thehumor and not putting them down.
Welcome to Elder Wisdom Stories from the Green Bench.
I'm Aaron Davis and along with my Co host Lloyd Hetherington,
(00:44):
it's a real pleasure to share with you our conversations with
some fascinating people. The actual green bench began at
Schlegel Villages Retirement andLong Term Care Residences as a
place to have conversations, to listen and be heard.
And we've turned the real bench into these podcasts where you
meet residents, some of the Schlegel family and their
(01:07):
extended family of care workers,and so many more wonderful
guests. By now, you know my Co host
Lloyd, who's 86 and is a resident, as well as a retired
educator and missionary, a dad, grandfather and widower.
And he and I are tickled to treat you to just about the most
entertaining couple we've met sofar in these 18 podcast
(01:29):
episodes, Patricia and Dennis Bailey live.
Oh, and laugh in the village of Taunton Mills.
Lloyd, I love that we're talkingabout the pursuit of passions
and or hobbies. What's your hobby and what is
your passion? Let's start with your hobby.
My hobby is words. I enjoy working with words.
(01:51):
Give me a good pun any day and Iwould love it.
Give me a game of Scrabble and Ienjoy it immensely.
Turn me loose on my computer andI'll dash off a paragraph here
and there and I just delight in words, words and more words.
My passion, on the other hand, is people.
(02:11):
I've worked with people all my life.
I've worked with them the down to note situations where they've
literally been in the most desperate of straits.
And I've worked with people whenthey had their moments of
celebration and joy. And I find that during this time
of the pandemic, this is one of the biggest challenges I face,
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being cut off from some of the people that I love and enjoy
being with and working with. Well, isn't it wonderful that we
get a chance to do this and to meet people like Patricia and
Dennis at the village of TauntonMills?
Indeed it is. And if you like a pun, well, let
me just tell you that Dennis, ofcourse, is a scientist who won
awards for his work with polymers.
(02:53):
So you know that he and Patricia, after 60 plus years of
marriage, definitely have chemistry.
Don't give me a mercy laugh. That's OK.
I can take it. Welcome to elder wisdom to both
of you. And what we love about you is
passion and your art in poetry, Patricia and Dennis, the way
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that you've made a difference tothe world.
You are contributing through your talents and passion.
And so let's start with Patriciaand your poetry.
When did you begin writing? As long as I could print, I
think I've I've written something, usually in a journal.
But as I grew older and got overthe fact that my School Report
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said weak in English, I, I wrotemore as mainly prose at first,
short stories and small items, and then I I started working in
poetry. I found it was good for my brain
really to stretch it a bit and I've continued writing ever
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since. And we're going to hear
hopefully some of your work a little bit later on.
But Lloyd, too, has expanded on his talent in writing.
And I don't know if you know this, Patricia and Dennis, but
our Lloyd is a published author in one of the Reader's Digests
this year. Aren't you, Lloyd?
That's right. So during the time of pandemic,
(04:20):
I had lots and lots of time to think and to write.
And so I picked it at the publication.
R Canada put up my Reader's Digest.
I thought I could read an article like that.
So I dashed off 1, sent it off to the Reader's Digest.
And what's to my surprise, they accepted the article, published
(04:42):
it in the January issue of R Canada.
And so I can say I am published in the national publication, but
I've done other writing as well.During the pandemic, I'd write
articles for my grandchildren and my children.
And for my 86th birthday, they compiled them into a book.
And so I have a book published now as well.
(05:06):
Mind you, I was surprised when Iwas writing those articles, my
audience was very limited, but they thought they were they
circulating. And so there it is, not the most
scholarly piece of work, but it's out there in circulation
anyway. It's all about connection,
especially now more than ever. Dennis, tell us how you stay
(05:30):
connected through your work, through your passions, through
your hobbies. What do you like to do?
Well, first of all, I'd like to comment, Patricia said.
She was not very good at Englishat school, and I was absolutely
hopeless at chemistry at school.And so those became our careers.
I was absolutely terrible at chemistry because the way it's
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taught is that we learn everything about what has
already been done in chemistry, but not what is required to be
done. And it was only when I got into
research laboratories and was able to research new ventures
that I was able to take an interest in it and really like
it. So your message then from you
and Patricia is don't listen to the critics, whether they are
(06:15):
people marking your papers or, you know, anyone who has
anything to say that you can't do something.
Well, I think that is it. You know, if someone says we
can't do something, then that's when we start doing it.
And as far as my hobbies are concerned, there's, they're
mainly on the creative side in that I for a long time have been
(06:37):
doing soapstone carving and I ended up teaching soapstone
carving after I retired. And we both are really enjoying
painting and the programs we have at the Village of Taunton
Mills held for that in that direction.
And during the pandemic, I had alittle challenge because I
(06:57):
decided to see if I could paint or draw left-handed because when
I went to school, I was corrected.
I used to use my left hand, but every time I used it at school,
someone would hit me on the handwith a roller.
And so I became right-handed. And for well over 80 years I've
been right-handed and I decided to see if I could draw
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left-handed. And after 14 attempts at
left-handed drawing, I can now draw left-handed better than I
can draw right-handed. And intriguingly, when you were
conducting this own experiment on yourself, you got in touch
with a leading university expert.
Tell us about that, Dennis. Well, I got in touch with the
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Penn State expert, Doctor Porak,who is a world authority on left
handedness and right handedness,and she was very interested in
the rapid rapidity in which I'vebeen able to convert back to
left-handed Ness. And so the Penn State University
issued A blog outlining what I had done, and that was
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circulated worldwide. I I remember letters from my
grandmother and as she aged her penmanship sort of declined into
an almost spidery sort of a a writing.
Has yours actually improved or what's going on there?
Patricia can't even read my writing.
(08:24):
I think I would have been a doctor, so perhaps when I've had
a bit of practice writing left-handed, they should be able
to read what on earth I'm jotting down on bits of paper.
Well, as long as we can read andunderstand what Patricia has
been writing, because I'd like to turn it over to Lloyd to
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usher us into the Poet's corner for now.
I envy anyone with poetic skills.
I've tried writing a bit of dog once in a while, but my iambic
pentameter just doesn't seem to work the way it should.
So I have a dream that someday I'll put some words on paper
that will rhyme and literally sing from the heart.
(09:07):
But Patricia, you've just discovered a skill that
resonates with you, and I'd likeyou to tell us a bit about your
writing. Well, it's as someone very wise
once said, it's mainly begins with inspiration and ends with
perspiration. I enjoy it though.
I, I find using words that really most of them I find in my
(09:32):
poetry are about the great 3-4 level.
But I do enjoy putting words together and I like the old
system of writing poetry that has some rhyming.
It's a, it's a, it's a discipline.
Some of the modern poems I find seem to go off at a tangent and
never come back to the point. And I, I, I do enjoy composing
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something that goes from beginning to to end with some
sort of a theme that you can relate to, especially during
these times when we're all feeling somewhat fearful and
isolated. So if you like, I'll read you a
couple of them. We would love that I.
Love that. Yeah, yeah, go for it.
(10:16):
Well, this one is called life cycle.
I didn't intend to do it. I almost got washed out with the
tide the day I fell into the washer and really thought that
I'd died. I didn't hear anyone singing, at
least no one's voice that I knew.
It was ever so speedy and swooshy, as if I'd got cold or
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the flu. I spun with the nighty and
jamas, the towels all yellow andblue to keep up my spirits.
I whistled A gurgly ditty or two.
It came to an end after spinningand I got all dried up.
Oh, but then the rinse cycle started up screaming and
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spinning all over again, quite dazzled and put out with the
action. I started to feel really
stressed, especially because I was wearing by now 2 shirts,
fancy pants and a vest. It's nothing to laugh at, I tell
you. No holiday choice for a girl.
By the time I came out, I was white as a sheet and looked like
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a wrinkly old Pearl. Lovely.
Wonderful. What a delight.
Congratulations. That's the first time I've ever
heard gurgly ditty in a poem or anywhere else, so take that.
That's wonderful, Patricia. Thank you very much.
Would you like to hear another one on a more serious note?
(11:43):
Ohh, yes, definitely. And while we cleanse our palates
from the the laughter of your trip into the washing machine, I
must ask you, I hope that's not based on a true story.
No, not hardly. Well, you certainly are bubbly
enough, let us say that. And I I like to picture perhaps
Lloyd, and you do too, that thatDennis is sitting there quietly
(12:05):
carving his soapstone. And Patricia has her, her steno
pad in hand and a pen and she's looking out the window and
trying to come up with just the right words to rhyme, stressed
with vest. And it's just, oh, it's just
marvelous. Thank you for that.
All right, do go on. Well, I have one here called
Hope which might be applicable at this time for some people.
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Yes, please. Hope, a beacon in the dark, A
whisp of breath, A longing dream, a cry for help.
Courageous plea, the unknown begged.
Look speedily and see up close all that we need.
The world is wounded. Stop the bleed.
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We look undaunted to the light. Maintain our vision, do what's
right. Gently, steadfastly hold its
rays. Unfortunately, calmly mend our
ways. Keep the light our guide and
stay to lift our spirits. Everyday hope floats in air to
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slowly rise. Anticipation of surprise change
will come to bless our eyes. That is beautiful.
Just precious. It is.
We need hope in this day and age.
We so desperately need it. With all of the gloom and all of
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the negative reports, we've got to hope for a better tomorrow.
Yes, indeed. Did your poem about COVID and
frontline workers and holding oncome to be the final story in
CTV News Lisa Laflam's national newscast?
Well, I wrote it and I always submit them to the recreation
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team here to see if they like them.
If they do, and they usually seem to thank heaven, they go
into the Chronicle, which is circulated once a month here.
And I believe it was sent through to the office and the
general manager I believe has a contact through her husband with
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the TV station and I believe it was submitted to Lisa Laflamme
and it seemed to fit the bill. So to my amazement someone
called and said it's going to beon at 10:00 on the news and then
it was going to be on at anothertime.
In the end Dennis and I gave up and went to bed and we did and
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then we were, I think we were sleeping and then the phone rang
and woke us up and our neighbor upstairs said you're on
television. Guess what?
So it was rather a nice experience I must say.
Isn't she sweet? Can you believe it?
Well, don't you snooze and lose.Be sure and go to elderwisdom.ca
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and the Wisdom Bank page and you'll see that beautiful piece
of Patricia's poem on CTV News that was produced at Schlegel
Villages. That's Elder wisdom.ca.
Now back to our chat. Dennis, we know that you kind of
get the first pass on her work. Is that true?
(15:36):
Like before it goes into the publication.
Tell us about that. She gives me a copy of her poem
and it probably runs to about 27pages.
Not exactly. She lets me read the first draft
and I read it and I say, what a wonderful start.
(15:59):
It's absolutely great. But lines 7 to 13 are absolute
garbage. They've got nothing to throw
them out. Put those into another poem,
they're all right, but they've got nothing to do.
So they And then I'd say, but I like the ending and I like the
title. It all looks good except that
(16:19):
middle chunk. So either leave it out or
replace it. And so she says, she says no.
That's my favorite bit. I usually say yes, dear.
You don't say yes, dear, yes, it's OK.
Perhaps, she says. Perhaps she says yes, dear.
That's my favorite bit. I don't like the beginning.
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So she retires to the corner to write some more poem.
And she comes back and says, I've got it, I've got it.
And it's an absolute different poem, nothing to do with the
first one. So then she said Nicole needs it
on Tuesday for the Chronicle. What are we going to do?
And so she then goes into a corner and has another go.
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And finally it just emerges. It's like an imperfect
chrysalis, which comes out to bea wonderful butterfly.
You see what I said about perspiration?
It's not only the writing of thepoem, it's it's holding onto
your breath while you think rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb.
I'll go back and have another bash at it.
(17:25):
Oh, you, you've done a lot of travel in your lives together,
and I'd love to talk about that.I I don't think that Dennis
would have made the diplomatic corps.
Oh, I. Would I certainly would.
Oh yes, that that that that is my Forte.
Definitely. So why don't you just pull out
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your passports, folks, and take us on a little trip through some
of your travels? Well, the first time we went
abroad was on a trip to Italy and it was a very, very
inexpensive trip and it was the first time we'd been abroad.
We hadn't been, we were war timebabies and we got married and we
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hadn't got much money. And then we saved up and went to
a 12 day trip to Italy for, for I think it was about 14 lbs or
something like this. So we got on the boat, we went
on to caught the the bus on the other side of the channel and we
went into Holland for the night.And we crossed Holland off the
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lists after about 7 or 8 hours. And we went the next day to
Belgium. And then we went to France.
And then we went to Switzerland.And we thought, well, when are
when are we going to get to Italy?
And then we, we went a little bit into Austria again and then
back into Switzerland. And then finally we got to Italy
and we went all over Italy for this 28 lbs And then had to come
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all the way back, which we did all on a bus.
And we, we managed that vacationwhen we still have got some
wonderful memories of that, likehow strict the Courier was.
You're cracking her whip and saying you will have 5 minutes
that we in Rome and, and we would scurry off the bus and
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we'd see what whatever they parked the bus for us to have a
look at. And then we would wait for a
very elderly couple. They were probably 40 and, and,
and they came staggering down the road at length with
beautiful ice creams and we haven't had a time to buy an ice
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cream. And they'd come and they'd get
yelled at by the woman. She said I'm going to leave you
next time if you do this again, you etcetera, etcetera.
And they did it all the way around the trip because they'd
obviously been on a on a trip before and we hadn't.
Since then we've been all over the place and we actually spent
(19:57):
several months working in Thailand, which took place in
1995. And you went to teach chemistry.
Patricia ended up teaching theretoo.
So share your perspective on it.That'd be wonderful.
Well, first of all, it was a KESSO project, which is Canadian
Executive Services Overseas volunteer project and we don't
(20:20):
get paid for it. They ship us out with airfare
and hotel paid for. And it started off very
interestingly because we didn't know where we were going to stay
and we were running out of time.We were about to fly to Thailand
in about 3 days and we still haven't got a forwarding
address. We didn't know which hotel we
(20:41):
were going to stay at. So I phoned the associate
counsel who was making a lot of arrangements for us in Ontario
and I spoke to their associate counsel and he said I'm sorry
you didn't get the detail, but you're going to the Colin's
house and it's the most wonderful place in Asia.
He said, you will love it, He said.
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It's got the largest dormitory in Asia, he said, and the ladies
sleep on one side and the men sleep on the other side of the
bedroom, he said, and have a big, big curtain between the
two. He said it's absolutely great,
he said, and the food isn't so hot, though he said you, you
have pretty well the same meal every day.
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And then there was a big porous from me and I thought, what on
earth are we going to be doing? And he said, of course I'm
joking. You said Colin's house is, is
the YMCA. So we ended up staying at the
YMCA in Bangkok, which turned out to be a teaching hotel for
people that were getting their first job.
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They were coming out of the North Northern Territories, you
know, straight out of the jungleto a job.
And so the the staff was being trained to go into, into Koreas
in the hospitality business. So that started the trip.
And on the first day of my adventure there, I ordered
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breakfast and I ordered something fairly simple.
I ordered a cereal and an orangejuice and a cup of coffee.
And I waited for a considerable time and eventually a big piece
of steaming hot fish, spicy fisharrived and very other things
that I didn't recognize. And I explained that that wasn't
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my meal. So they took it away and they
brought some other stuff. And then after about four
ventures, I realized that the waiter didn't understand English
and I was ordering my food. And you hadn't a clue what I was
ordering, although the menu is bilingual.
And so I'll hand over to Patricia because I got the the
news when I got back from my first day that she was teaching
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the hotel staff English. And so so she had an assignment
to teach the waiter and the rentrelief right off the bat.
Once they had heard that I had English qualifications and heard
my voice on the phone before we left Canada, they said you will
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speak English to our managerial staff Mondays, Wednesdays and
Fridays and do a lecture every other Friday to somebody else.
So my immediate reaction was, well, we'll see about it, but I
was very aware of my limitationsas a as an add on because I was
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allowed to go because of the length of time of the project.
So I hadn't expected to do anything much except, you know,
just rest a bit, which was quitethe wrong thing that happened.
So I did teach in the afternoonsfor two weeks, the restaurant
staff. So I started in with teaching
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them Please show me on the menu,which seemed to go over very
well because a couple of tourists, I heard them saying
can you show me the way to the royal palace?
And then we want to go by Tuk Tuk to somewhere else.
And they were going on at lengthand the answer came back, please
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show me on the venue. So I guess one phrase had
worked, which was quite a good thing, really.
Yes. And on a similar vein, Patricia
was teaching them various English idioms, and I was giving
them notes and all sorts of information which they would put
in their desk and forget and they wouldn't even remember
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they'd had it. And so I suggested she taught
them Out of Sight, out of mind, and she wrote that on the board.
And I wanted to reinforce that message.
They put it away and they forgetabout it.
And she said, can anyone tell mewhat that means?
And the vice president, Brazit, he stood up and he said, yes, I
(25:04):
know that out of sight, out of mind means invisible idiot.
The one thing that I was concerned about for a while
while we were there was the factthat they called Dennis uncle
and they called me Elephant. Rude.
(25:26):
And I found out later that that's because at least that was
the explanation they gave me afterwards was because they
venerate the elephant as a as a an animal who is also a vehicle
and and considered very worthy. So with that, I made myself
(25:47):
contented. Patricia, what a delight to hear
your stories. What a difference between that
package tour to Rome and actually getting into the
culture of Thailand. You really, you really learned
what it was all about. You learned to appreciate what
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they had and appreciate what youhave as well.
That makes your life so much more interesting.
Oh, we had many adventures there.
And I can't resist A punt for Lloyd because one of my hobbies
is collecting very early Britishand Canadian postage stamps and
(26:31):
studying Canadian postage history.
And and I I'm sure that he's itching to tell me that
Philatterly will get me nowhere.I could see that one coming.
I honestly could. Oh, my goodness.
We could talk about your travelsfor ages and, you know,
(26:51):
including Antarctica, South America, Brazil.
But back at home, Dennis, you spearheaded an exchange program
with First Nation students. Can we talk about that a little
bit, the impact that you had on Canadian soil and in the
Internet as well? OK.
Well, there are two aspects of that.
One which is ongoing at the village of Taunton Mills.
(27:14):
But the first experience I had with this project was as
literacy chair for the District seven O 7 O Rotary clubs which
52 Rotary clubs and I organised their literate literacy programs
where where they had got them. And not many clubs were
interested in literacy and even fewer were interested in First
(27:38):
Nations projects. And I got involved in two or
three which put both together. And the first one was an
interest from the Durham Regional School Board, who were
interested in twinning with First Nations remote communities
and talking with these groups via Skype and learning more
(28:02):
about the First Nations culture and history and folklore and,
and their language as well. And these were Grade 8 kids,
grade 7 or grade 8IN in the Durham school system.
And we paired them off 5 schoolswith five schools in the north.
And the first of all, there'd been a few classes for the
(28:28):
Durham school children to learn as much as they could about the
First Nations before they had this exchange.
And then the people from up north said we would like to
study the same courses as that they're learning down here
because a lot of our culture disappeared due to residential
(28:49):
schooling and several generations were lost.
And the people down here had gotbooks on the subject that they
had not got up there. And so for the first few weeks,
the exchange was with just one curriculum and that was the
First Nations culture. And then they started Skyping
(29:11):
each other and the kids getting to know each other and talking
about how they spent their theirweekend, where the people up
north would say, oh, we had a great time.
We've just been snaring rabbits and trapping muskrats, and that
was a little bit different to the kids down here who'd gone to
the shopping mall and cruised around.
(29:31):
And so that exchange got some very valuable contacts for me.
And now that I'm at the Village of Taunton Mills for, for two or
three years before I came, really, they had a program
initiated by Irene Showette, oneof our residents, to involve all
(29:53):
of the seniors here in knitting and doing all sorts to provide
warm garments for the First Nations and to have fundraisers
to buy backpacks and school supplies and then hygiene
products and package them all off.
And then team up with a school in the First Nations communities
(30:15):
in these remote far north communities and send a package
to every kid in the school for of of these wonderful goods for
Christmas. The power of connection and just
reaching out and you never know who's going to answer a request
or a prayer. And you know, as I've said, we
(30:35):
could talk to you forever. But I wanted to ask you as we
wrap up, and this is going to bea bit like the newlywed game for
people who have been married forover 60 years.
But Patricia, you're going to answer this first.
I'm giving you an airline ticketanywhere in the world.
You are an elder of 40 years old, like the people in Rome on
the bus. And you can go anywhere
(30:56):
tomorrow. Where are you going?
England. OK, Dennis, you don't have to go
with her. It's this is a separate game
show. OK, well I'm going to go with
her to England to carry the bags.
Oh my. Goodness, I know.
I think if I could go anywhere II would like to go back to
(31:18):
Italy. Yeah, well.
There's lots that we haven't seen in this world, but there's
lots that are worth repeating. Patricia wants to go.
To India, but I won't be going because Dennis doesn't eat other
than meat and potatoes. I don't eat vegetables, for a
start. I don't believe that vegetables
should be put on this earth, so I don't eat them.
Oh, OK, Hang on, Dennis, how oldare you?
(31:42):
I'm just coming up to 86. You're okay, whatever you're
doing, keep doing it. That's all I can say.
I'm not a dietitian but it seemsto work for you.
And I've been sending out a little cartoon.
Well, actually, it's a photograph of a pathetic little
child who was just about to burst into tears.
And he's got his hands in front of him in the in prayer
(32:04):
formation there. And he's saying, oh Lord, oh
Lord, please don't make Brusselssprouts the cure for COVID
goodness. Well, just a word of wisdom to
you, Dennis, that cocoa is a bean, therefore chocolate is
salad. It's just it all makes sense.
Actually, I do make a few exceptions because people tell
(32:27):
me that vegetables are wonderfuland chocolate is one of my
concessions. I'm I'm just supporting that as
100% chocolate is just a marvellous food.
No mercury poison in it, no insecticides for sprays in it,
just none of the problems you hear from the other food groups.
Just go for chocolate at any time.
(32:47):
My favorite is an egg because itcomes with its own packaging.
And the some of the vegetable grains are worth tackling,
especially after they've been distilled.
And don't forget your fruit in the wine, right?
That's right. Oh my goodness, I actually think
Patricia was talking about real eggs, guys, and not chocolate
(33:09):
eggs. I mean, how did she get in the
conversation? The way I usually do when Dennis
is on a roll. Well, on that egg roll we shall
reluctantly say goodbye to you for now.
But oh, thank you so, so much for sharing your passion, your
spirit, your humor, your wonderful memories.
(33:30):
What a treat this has been. Thank.
You very much. It's very, very pleasant.
So you mean we've been doing it already?
I thought we were starting now. Yeah.
This is just the warm up. Wait till we get rolling.
That's right. Thank you.
Bye. Bye and thank you, Nicole.
(33:51):
Ah, Nicole, And yes, thank you to all of the Schlegel Care team
who have made these podcasts possible.
It's quite a production behind the scenes, and this one was
just the most fun. I told you, didn't I?
Join Lloyd Hetherington and me as we sit down next time with
Kathy Kleineau. She's working on her second book
(34:12):
of interviews with her fellow residents at one of the Schlegel
Villages retirement and long term care residences.
She's bringing her community together through storytelling.
Exactly what we're doing here every two weeks.
And to make sure you don't miss an episode, just go to
elderwisdom.ca and find the linkfor our Green Bench podcasts and
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we'll let you know as soon as the next one's up.
And while you're at the website,be sure and take the Elder
Wisdom Pledge. I'm Aaron Davis on behalf of
Lloyd and all of us, thank you for your time.
And remember, your seat on the Green Bench is ready and
waiting. Elder Wisdom Stories from the
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Green Bench is brought to you bySchlegel Villages.
A complete continuum of care offering independent living to
long term care. Celebrating and honoring the
wisdom of the elder. To learn more about us, please
go to our website schlegelvillages.com.