I’m still praying for this strange illness to go away, but I am so glad we can now go to Church. I sit there sweating with a mask on but enjoy seeing my church family, the beautiful windows, and hearing the wonderful choir accompanied by our talented pianist. I’m glad that church is somewhat back to normal, along with certain stores and restaurants. I am looking forward to when I can get behind the wheel again and actually walk in Publix! But, I’m still working on getting over my strange fall that turned me into a cripple for a few months … sigh.

I do my exercises every day, thanks again to my kind therapist and the others at Ortho Atlanta. Thanks to Henry Transit for getting me there! I’m still able to access the internet and Facebook via my laptop. So, I decided I’d take the mental age test again and I’m still a thirty-year-old in my mind. I complete a daily quiz or two, via Publisher’s Clearing House, and usually ace most of those. If it’s a test about cars, I’ll be 100%. Some of my magazines have interesting articles that ask me to find the end to certain popular tag lines. I got most of those from the past, including ‘the best part of waking up…’ and ‘see the USA in a …’ Did you get those too?

I love the Reader’s Digest tests, and now enjoy the neat magazine Reminisce, which features lots of throw-back articles, mostly from the forties and fifties. I learn from all my magazines, and I guess you know that learning new things keeps your brain active and young. Reading Reminisce, I saw the beginning of Goldfish crackers, and how they originally did not have a smile on them. A biscuit maker in Switzerland invented them in honor of his wife and a Pepperidge Farm founder tasted them while touring Switzerland. So she brought Goldfish to the US in 1962!

I’m very glad to learn something new every day as I listen to 92.1 in Jackson, Georgia. All of the DJs make it a point to bring us up to date on the latest from Hollywood, and lots more. I always enjoy hearing which famous people are celebrating their birthday. I look forward to learning about special celebrations nearby that are coming up soon. I would love to take a drive to Jackson and see what they’ve done to renovate the courthouse. I’m not driving yet, but working on getting there —maybe June? It’s not the driving, but how I will manage once I get to Publix and Food Depot. So, I’m working on reminding my hip and leg that I AM still young! I’m still missing the library too, but thankful I have a collection of favorite books. I just finished reading “Highest Duty” about pilot Sullenberger landing a big plane in the Hudson River after birds destroyed both engines. His personal items were returned after the plane was cleaned and he found his airway manual with a fortune cookie enclosure taped inside with the message “A delay is better than a disaster.” I think these are great words to describe what he and his co-pilot accomplished on January 15, 2009.

I also enjoyed learning how “MASH” began, thanks to Reminisce. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea was an actual medical source for injured military, and a surgeon, H. Richard Hornberger, wrote “MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors,” based on his Korean experience. I never knew that, as I faithfully watched MASH on TV. I respect and admire all those who serve and protect, and that show was one of my favorites. So, I WILL keep learning, reading, and of course exercising. And I hope that soon, I can write in my Bible that COVID no longer exists!

Beverly Wittler has four children, eight grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. She lives in McDonough.