By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support local journalism.
Being surfeited can be satisfying but tiring
Placeholder Image

“Surfeit,” both noun and verb, deals with overabundance, excess. It’s how one feels after a covered-dish-dinner at church, and we’ve had three of those in June!

For the past two weeks, I have felt surfeited with more than good food. My loving, lovely granddaughter, Jillian, has been spending some vacation time with her dad and me. (She lives in Rabun County with her mother.) So I have been engaged in a number of child-type activities, and for one who is celebrating an 84th birthday, that’s not as easy as it once was.

Actually, I have watched from the sidelines through two different VBS schedules, my major contribution being transportation to and fro and a little monetary addition (a variation from my heretofore VBS routine). At both Harmony Baptist and Bethel Methodist, things were well-organized and well-executed – bringing blessings to both the youngsters and volunteer staffs. This year, however, there was a new emphasis on security: at both churches, adults who dropped off and picked up were required to have a special identification ticket. Now that’s a real sign of the times; we’ve heard of so many “estranged partners” or even strangers using this type of situation to abduct children that institutions such as schools and churches must adopt security measures even though most are unnecessary.

I am also almost water –logged. Having for years used water exercises to help stay mobile, I decided to swap my Lanier Athletic Center (Cumming) arthritis classes for Dawson County’s new Bodyplex fitness center classes.  I can go more quickly, save gas and even drive hope in a terrycloth cover-up. Therefore, instead of once a week, I’ve been exercising in the pool several times a week, including some extra times with granddaughter Jillian. I am quick to admit that my joints can move much more easily in water than on dry land (although I have not completely abandoned the weekly yoga/tai chi class at the Senior Center).

Television tastes of an adolescent and an octogenarian are definitely different, and I have become even more aware that programs designed for teenagers, which pre-teens love to watch, are a far cry from what they were in the 60’s when Jillian’s dad was the viewer. Of course, to be honest, adult programming is also quite different! Probably that difference is one reason I am not an avid TV watcher.

At least, during these past weeks, my surfeit of national political coverage has been reduced; I haven’t been bombarded with nearly so many pundits interpreting the latest polls or parsing candidates’ comments. And that’s just as well.

There has not been an excess of housework, however. With trying to insert a few of my usual activities and obligations, I’ve been too tired to do the extra “summer chores” which I had anticipated. And, perhaps you noticed, neither the time nor energy to write a column.

Helen Taylor's column appears periodically in the Dawson Community News