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The INDEPENDENT, December 16, 2010
Be a thoughtful food gift giver
Gifts from the kitchen pro-
vide a way to give from the
heart. Being fancy or elaborate
isn’t important – being thought-
ful is. Just as in selecting non-
food gifts, it’s important to con-
sider the needs, interests and
abilities of the receiver when
planning and preparing holiday
gifts of food. Points to consider:
• Avoid adding nuts or co-
conut for young children or the
elderly. These ingredients
could create a choking hazard.
Also, some people are allergic
to nuts.
• Consider chewing abilities.
Sometimes elderly people
have tender gums or missing
teeth, so softer food items are
in order.
• If you know the recipient
has diabetes or is working to
maintain a healthy weight,
don’t tempt with high-calorie
treats. Opt for soup mixes or
low-fat,
whole-grain
fruit
breads.
• Consider household size. A
single person or couple may
enjoy a small fruit basket, but
find a case of fruit overwhelm-
ing. Give items in proportion to
the household size.
• There is often an abun-
dance of foods during the holi-
days, so think about a gift for
the weeks ahead. Coordinate a
festive basket complete with
the recipe and ingredients
needed to prepare a special
meal.
• For your friends or family
members with limited cooking
skills, give a Meal of the Month
certificate. Pledge to prepare
them a meal once a month.
This would be a special gift for
those who live alone or find
cooking a challenge. Plan to
share the gift of your time and
enjoy the meal with them.
Source: Lynda Johnson, R.D.,
University of Missouri Extension
Are worries keeping you awake at night?
by Robert Evans Wilson, Jr.
(www.jumpstartyourmeeting.com)
The other day on the radio I
heard these lyrics from the
Shinedown song, If You Only
Knew, “It’s 4:03 and I can’t
sleep…I toss and turn like the
sea.” I thought, “Yeah, why is it
always 4:00 a.m. that I wake up
when I’m worried about some-
thing?” The singer of this top 10
pop rock song was troubled by
a woman. What’s keeping you
awake?
Most of us, at one time or
another, have spent sleepless
hours in bed worrying about
something. Then making it
worse, you’re tired the whole
next day.
Over the years, I’ve ruminat-
ed over all sorts of things. Big
issues I have little or no control
over like politics, the environ-
ment, terrorism, and the econo-
my. Personal issues that I need
to affect such as my business,
my family, and my relation-
ships. I have even worried over
my volunteer work. Churning
the same thoughts over and
over again.
Some of us worry about the
past – what could’ve been if
only we had done something
differently. Others worry about
some future problem that has-
n’t even occurred yet.
Worry feels like motivation
because it is rooted in the de-
sire to fix a situation, but it is
actually a de-motivator. It robs
us of valuable energy we need
to live a productive life. I love
this modern update to an old
proverb: “Worry is a brisk ride
on a rocking horse; you burn a
lot of energy, but you don’t get
anywhere.” It is an amusing
proverb that creates an accu-
rate metaphor, but it does not
offer us an answer on how to
deal with worry.
For a simple solution on
countering worry, I’ve always
enjoyed the lyrics of this Irving
Berlin song from the movie
White Christmas: “When I’m
worried and I can’t sleep, I
count my blessings instead of
sheep; and I fall asleep, count-
ing my blessings.” Although, I
must admit that I didn’t really
hear these sage words or make
use of them for years.
When I finally did; I found
that it really works. Sometimes
we have to start with the ba-
sics, and remind ourselves of
all that we do have and all that
is going smoothly in our lives in
order to put the troubling matter
into perspective: “I have a roof
over my head, I have my
health, I have food in the
house, I have a car, I have
friends, etc.”
I recently revisited Dale
Carnegie’s book, How to Stop
Worrying and Start Living. It
was written during the Great
Depression and World War II. A
period of time when most peo-
ple had plenty to stress over.
The advice still holds up today.
The trick is to divert your
pensive energy into practical
projects. Carnegie suggests
that we focus on doing our best
one day at a time and the future
will take care of itself. In other
words, keep busy! Get so
caught up in your work that you
have no time to ponder all the
“What ifs” that have been run-
ning like a broken record in
your mind.
He also suggests that you
ask yourself, “What is the worst
that could happen?” Then he
See Help on page 20
Walking keeps your brain young
Wishing you a Merry
Christmas and a
Happy New Year
Researchers have found
that older adults who walk reg-
ularly perform daily tasks more
efficiently, maintain their inde-
pendence, and are less likely to
suffer a disability. A new study
from the University of Illinois re-
veals that walking also helps
West Oregon
Electric Cooperative, Inc.
503-901-1705
the brain.
This study monitored brain
activity of sedentary adults,
aged 59 to 80, who joined a
walking group for one year. The
researchers also measured
brain activity in younger (18- to
35-year-old) adults. Brain activ-
ity was measured in brain re-
gions that function together as
networks. As one ages, the cir-
cuits in the brain become less
connected.
The results showed that old-
er adults who walked at least
40 minutes three times a week
had brain activity networks sim-
ilar to those of the 20 year-olds.
They also had an improvement
in memory, attention, planning,
prioritizing, strategizing, and
multi-tasking. These results did
not happen over night; it took
one year of walking before
these benefits occurred.
Source: OSU Extension Service