Tag: learning

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How my child’s battle with cancer prepared our family for the pandemic

Thirteen years ago my life changed overnight. I was happily living a normal routine. Then, suddenly, I found myself in constant worry. I was fearful of financial ruin. I was having constant concern of a family member’s failing health, and anxiety of the possible effects to a compromised immune system.

I found myself feeling safer in isolation. I went down a rabbit hole of unpredictability checking numbers, incessantly wiping down surfaces, washing hands, and applying for social services like food stamps after losing my job.

Back then, the numbers I was checking were not the daily percent of positive tests for an invisible illness in my community or the number of local hospitalizations.

The numbers were of the different blood cells my son had. The illness that he had was not invisible. In fact, it could be seen under a microscope in a regular blood sample because it appeared black. It was cancer. He was only 6 years old, and I was 26.

The whole world was not experiencing it with us at that time. Although some 300,000 families experience it annually, we still felt like the only ones.

The journey started in May of 2007. Seven years later, my son
was done with chemo and cancer free.

During those seven years he endured more spinal taps, bone marrow aspirations, blood transfusions, and needle pokes than I could ever count (or want to).

He also went through a relapse, six fractures to his spine, a blood clot, and a stroke.

The journey was tiring, scary, and forever life-changing.

What I didn’t expect in the years following his recovery was how useful all that I learned would become.

All the heartaches and lessons I learned during that time would become a road map for navigating a future health crisis: The COVID-19 pandemic.

A year ago, in March 2020, we all were plummeted into a whole new world. To me, however, the landscape looked familiar.

I discovered that I was equipped to navigate it. Through my experiences I had garnered some tools in dealing with uncertainty and crisis. I want to share the top 10 with you.

Find Joy- I found during those hard times that joy seemed to elude me. I was submerged in worry and sadness. It took a while for me to recognize that in the toughest of times you must work at finding joy.

When you look for beauty, you will find it, and once you do, beauty and joy will naturally find you.

Show Gratitude & Appreciation-They say nothing is a better teacher than experience, and I would add nothing makes a person wiser than proper perspective.

Finding gratitude was hard at fi rst, but suddenly I became grateful for the little things that became big things to me; little things like a smile or laugh from my sick son, his immune system being strong enough to visit friends, or the gourmet coffee shop at the hospital. The minute I started learning to appreciate and have gratitude for the little things everything changed.

Be Flexible- Life will take you down paths you never predicted or saw coming. The lesson learned is that control is an illusion and hanging on to habits that once made sense, but do not anymore, will only make change that much harder to adapt to. Be willing to learn new things. Adapt your schedule, and go with the flow.

Create Fun- This is so important. Get creative. When my son was unable to go to movie theaters, attend parties or restaurants, we, as a family, brought the fun to us.

My parents started creating movie nights for him and his brother, and expanded them into themed movie nights.

There are no rules that say you need a bunch of people to throw a party! You
can throw a party on an easy budget with just your immediate family.

Since the pandemic, we started this again. We have thrown over 20 theme nights at home with just us that include costumes, dinner, and a movie, all  around a central theme.

Nothing is Forever- The best of times will not last, which could be a depressing thought, until you realize that also means the worst of times will not last forever either.

Everything on earth is temporary. EVERYTHING. So, breathe in the good and be present for it, and breathe out the tough times.

Find Stillness and Nature- Find time to meditate, pray, or just count your breaths in and out every day.

Experts say that 20 minutes of meditation a day is optimal. But days can get away from you in a crisis, so if you can only close your eyes and count 10 breaths in and out, say a mantra 10 times, or say a quick prayer to your God, it is more than nothing at all.

Also, even five minutes of observing nature can do wonders. Going outside is preferable, but some days I would only be able to watch the swaying of the trees or clouds through a hospital window. But even that would lighten my spirit enough to bring me some peace.

Ask for and Accept Help if You Need it- Having too much pride can have a devastating consequence on your family and soul. If you need help, ask for it, and if it is off ered, take it. There is no shame in it.

Give Love and Help Others- Nothing will make you happier than helping someone else. There is no medicine as powerful as putting your woes aside and focusing on helping another person. Look around you and see how even in turmoil you still possess the ability to better the lives of those around you,  and then do it.

Find Balance- This is something everyone struggles with in their lives, even without a crisis. It is important. However, it is even more important amid a crisis.

You will not achieve that every day. The important part is not pressuring yourself into perfection of balance, only striving for it over the course of your journey.

If you try to focus on balance without judging yourself for not perfecting it, in the arch of time, you will find you achieved it.

Make Humor a Coping Tool- Of all the tools and lessons learned throughout my life’s journey nothing is more potent a healer than humor.

Don’t take life so seriously because life itself is constantly contradictory, indecisive, and unpredictable. It is a beautiful mess, and so are you. Learn to
laugh about it!

In the end you should accept right now that your life will not look exactly like you envisioned it.

Your life may never be the same after this pandemic. It’s ok and natural to struggle with it. Just know that struggle is how you will grow.

Remember this time of pandemic does not make up the sum of your life. But if you use it as a teacher and look at it with a wise perspective, you may see the time as one of the most valuable of your life. The beauty of it lies in the fact that you get to choose.

Destiny Haggett is an advocate for pediatric cancer research, former model, and public speaker. She currently runs a 962-seat live entertainment venue in Coconut Creek, Florida.

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Breast cancer statistics on the rise — among men

It was a normal day for Mike Weatherly– that was until he noticed that an abnormally long hair on his chest needed trimming. It was on the areola that surrounds the nipple, and when he began to trim, he noticed a dark spot the size of a pencil eraser.

But, like most men, the Parkland resident procrastinated, thinking it was a pimple that would go away in time. But after a few weeks, it remained and that’s when he sought the counsel of a neighbor who happened to be an emergency room doctor.

“He didn’t like what he saw and told me I should get it biopsied,” said Weatherly.

“In October, the results came back as a positive grade 3 tumor and I was told I had breast cancer.”

If 100 breast cancers are diagnosed, only one will be found in a man. This year, however, it’s estimated that approximately 2,600 new cases will be diagnosed.

The 71-year-old former pilot for American Airlines, who has always been physically fit, had suddenly become a statistic. Yet, he never asked why me? “As humans, there’s a certain amount of vulnerability and things are going to happen,” he said.

“I also have rheumatoid arthritis, which is rare among men, so I’ve learned how to cope and never allowed myself to become depressed.”

When a tumor is sent to a lab for analysis, its grade is based on aggressiveness and invasiveness. Weatherly’s came back as grade 3, but luckily his cancer was localized and did not spread to surrounding lymph nodes.

If cancer cells had spread to the lymph node, they could have already traveled to the lymph system and spread to other parts of the body.

Weatherly’s cancerous tissue—and his nipple—were removed by a general surgeon on an outpatient basis, and now his ongoing care is in the hands of an oncologist.

“My treatment plan began in December and for the foreseeable future I’ll be seeing the specialist every six months,” he said. “I’ve been told it was a hormone- responsive tumor so in all likelihood I won’t require chemotherapy.”

Weatherly, a self-described “health nut” has been retired for 12 years. He was a track athlete at Southwest Missouri State College, and even into his late 30s participated in triathlons.

He continues to eat nutritional foods, works out on a stationary bike, and lifts weights at home. “Running track pushes a person to the limits, both physically and mentally,” he said. “I guess that’s where I learned the discipline about keeping the going into surgery, the better shape you’ll be in coming out and the quicker you’ll recover.”

Most male breast cancers are discovered in men over 50, where there is a history of breast cancer in the family, and the BRAC1 and BRAC2 (breast cancer susceptibility genes) are present.

Plus, if a man has had previous chest radiation therapy, he could be prone. Estrogen, which is used to treat prostate cancer, also increases the chances of male breast cancer. Injured testicles, liver disease, and obesity are also contributing to underlying factors.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the most common types of breast cancer in men is invasive ductal carcinoma. This is where cells grow outside the ducts into other parts of the breast tissue with the possibility of spreading to other parts of the body.

Men who inherit abnormal mutated genes are in a high-risk category, as the mutation may lead to either breast cancer or prostate cancer.

In Weatherly’s case, there was no family history of breast cancer or cancer in general. “I have to admit it was a shock and I never thought something like this would happen to me,” he said. “Thank goodness it was caught early enough.”

Since his cancerous tissue was removed, he’s undergone precautionary follow-ups, including a CT scan and PET scan.

“Most men are not diagnosed until it’s too late, so I was very lucky,” he said. “Just think, if that long hair hadn’t needed trimming, I may be telling you a much different story.”

As a fighter pilot on aircraft carriers in the Navy during the Vietnam era,
Weatherly learned how to deal with all kinds of situations, and his advice to men is to always be aware of any changes in their bodies.

“We tend to focus on heart attacks, strokes or whatever, and male breast cancer is an afterthought,” he said. “It’s only an afterthought until it happens to you.”

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Florida preserves college-level civics literacy requirements

Who’s second in the line of presidential succession? Speaker of the House, you say? Good job. You know your civics.

When President Reagan was shot in 1981, Secretary of State Alexander Haig said, “Constitutionally, gentlemen, you have the president, the vice president, and the secretary of state in that order…I am in control here.”

Haig later insisted he was talking about the executive branch, not the presidential line of succession. Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill, was not amused.

Either way, Florida wants to make sure its citizens are civics literate. So if you didn’t know your civics in high school, you’re in luck, because civics literacy is a graduation requirement at all state colleges and universities. It has been since 2017.

Civics literacy means an understanding of history and how government works.

Earlier this year, Gov. Ron DeSantis wanted to amend the 2017 law, introducing “The Florida Civic Literacy Test,” which basically was just a version of the U.S. Immigration Services Naturalization Test.

It was a 100 multiple-choice test and you only had to get 60 right to pass, the equivalent of a “D” letter grade.

To be clear, there are 100 questions would-be citizens have to study, but the examiner randomly selects ten from the 100 and the test taker isn’t given multiple choices. They have to know the answers to six questions, in addition to passing reading, writing, and speaking tests.

The Florida Department of Education (FDE) withdrew the amendment it had proposed after parties petitioned against it at the end of May. The amendment would have added the test as one of several options by which Florida College System students could demonstrate civic literacy competency.

But a representative from the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA), one of the petitioners against the proposed rule change, said that the citizenship test is problematic. “The problem with the proposed rule was that it created a test that could be passed by scoring 60 percent on a memorization test instead of completing a university-level course or an existing assessment specifically designed to measure collegiate level learning,” said Jonathan Pidluzny, ACTA’s vice president of academic affairs.

An ACTA press release states that the proposed rule would have “seriously weakened” the 2017 law, which says educators must “establish course competencies and identify outcomes that include, at minimum, an understanding of the basic principles of American democracy and how they are applied in our republican form of government, an understanding of the United States Constitution, knowledge of the founding documents, and how they have shaped the nature and functions of our institutions of self-governance, and an understanding of landmark Supreme Court cases and their impact on law and society.”

The Parklander requested a copy of the multiple-choice test from the Florida Department of Education, but officials did not supply one.

Civics test

A recent survey of 41,000 Americans, conducted by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, indicates less than four in ten Americans could pass a civics test. Some other notable facts from the survey: Those in Vermont had the highest passing rate (53 percent); the next four highest scoring states were Wyoming, South Dakota, Montana, and Virginia. Meanwhile, Louisiana had the lowest passing rate (27 percent), followed by Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, and Kentucky. Florida’s score was 29 percent. The questions below come from 100 used in the citizenship test.

Scroll below for correct answers

  1.  What is the supreme law of the land?
  2. When was the Constitution written?
  3. How many voting members are in the House of Representatives?
  4. What position is third in line of Presidential succession? (Hint, it’s still not Secretary of State.)
  5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the United States?
  6.  How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
  7. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
  8. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
  9. Name one right or freedom under the First Amendment.
  10.  Who was the president during World War I?

ANSWERS:

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DECA perseveres at MSD despite COVID

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s DECA program is the fourth largest chapter in the world. With CDC safety guidelines and virtual learning set in stone for the remainder of this year, DECA has not allowed the circumstances to limit its outreach to students.

Originally, DECA stood for “Distributive Education Clubs of America,” but it is now known only as DECA, a not-for-profit student organization. Since the club is co-curricular, it only includes students enrolled in the Academy of Finance and/or the Hospitality & Tourism programs offered at MSD.

“In the spring when I was appointed to be the president of DECA, I thought I would be sitting back in the classroom,” co-President Lexie Sealy said. “I feel like I am missing out on engaging with our members. I was really looking forward to meeting the freshmen and new members face to face.” MSD’s DECA is around 700 members strong and as a result, it has become a challenge to connect the members when meetings and socials are done through a computer screen with no real interaction.  With students learning through computers and staring at screens for hours at a time, it has become hard to engage and involve members.

“It is definitely a challenge for our chapter to connect with one another on virtual platforms, especially with all the technical difficulties that come with virtual events,” co-VP of School Activities Raegan DiRenzo said. “Despite this, I feel we’ve made the best of this situation and have been able to participate in engaging officer bonding events and socials.”

As an incentive for more participation, the club introduced a Girls Who Start chapter for students interested in hearing from female entrepreneurs, along with DECA in the Middle, a program where students from Westglades Middle School could learn about business-related concepts.

“Online learning has really made it hard for us to connect with the middle school kids,” VP of Middle School Relations Ziya Kassam said. “Usually we would be able to talk to the members one on one and be there in person whenever they needed, but this year it’s hard for us to communicate efficiently.”

Typically, DECA students compete at state competition and at the International Career Development Conference, where thousands of DECA students come together to compete and develop knowledge and skills for college and careers. Since competitions will no longer be conducted the same way as years prior, resources such as “Manual Monday” and “Testing Tuesday” are available to students who would like to focus more on preparation.

“It’s important to be prepared for competition,” sophomore LJ Russinoff said.

“Our chapter offers [resources] to ensure that our members are as prepare as possible for their events.”

As a result of eLearning, the DECA officer team and advisors have found ways to collaborate and find solutions for more effective networking, learning, and bonding. Just like other clubs and extracurriculars, establishing connections has become a struggle. The DECA program at MSD has learned to combat this issue with strong teamwork and innovative alternatives.

PERSPECTIVES:
Sharon Cutler – Academy of Finance teacher and DECA advisor

“From a teacher perspective, I had to rethink my lessons and how I’m going to teach with the understanding that students are looking at a computer screen. I am used to having project based learning so having my students still work in projects and with other people is very important to me. I try to look at what I can do instead of what I can’t.”

Lexie Sealy – DECA Co-President 

“The biggest challenge is keeping members engaged through a computer screen. We have had to take all the events we do every year and figure out a way to make them virtual and engaging for members. COVID-19 has made this position much more difficult than anticipated, but it is so rewarding to hear positive feedback from the student body.”

 Jacob Foster – DECA senior who has gone to state/ICDC competition

“I have competed in state and district competitions every year, and I attended ICDC my sophomore year. Virtual competition is not ideal, but it is understandable since DECA wants to keep everyone safe. My goal this year is to work hard to win at ICDC since this will be my last chance. We have been looking forward to this competition in California since our freshman year, and everyone is hopeful that things will be better in May or April so that we will be able to travel and compete.”

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Parkland mom launches Dough Nation

With the increase in schools and workplaces closed due to the pandemic, many parents have found themselves holding multiple roles.

ER nurse and Parkland resident, Shannon Taccalite, has firsthand experience.“My husband and I do everything we can to keep our kids active and off electronics. School is virtual, so it gets to be too much.”

A mother to 4 children, ages 2-20, Taccalite juggles working as a full-time nurse and a mother. Since the pandemic, Taccalite has had to find activities to keep her children busy for more than five minutes.

While home one day with her 2-year-old daughter, Demi, Taccalite decided to search online mom blogs for inspiration to keep her little ones busy. “At first, I experimented with colored pasta, colored rice, and rainbow shaving cream, but Demi and my 9-year-old son Massimo got bored quickly with the other stuff… not to mention it made a MESS!”

She found that the only thing that would keep her kids busy for more than 5 minutes was playdough.

“The dough kept them engaged, especially when I added little things for them to make a scene or cutters to make shapes,” Taccalite said.

Taccalite’s kids would grab the tablet or TV if they were bored, but when she offered to make the dough, they would get really into the process.

She decided to create her own dough for many reasons. “I didn’t want to go out to the store with the kids, so I used what I had on hand, and secondly, I could add oils to mine to make them smell good and change the consistency to what felt nice. The store-bought dough tends to be harder and doesn’t smell as good in my opinion!” Taccalite said.

Besides the fun experience of creating the dough with her children, Taccalite says that she and her children like to make it themselves because it can be customized.

After creating some for her kids, Taccalite gave samples of dough to neighborhood kids and her work friends’ kids.  Each person who tried out the product said the same. “It kept my kid busy for longer than 5 minutes.”

With all the positive comments Taccalite received from the dough, she started to create and sell themed dough kits.

Taccalite makes the dough in her kitchen with the help from her children. “I wear gloves. I keep it super clean. It is all non- toxic, made with household ingredients. It took a while to get the consistency and smell, but with practice, I figured what worked.”

The non-toxic products she uses include vegetable oil, salt, cream of tartar, flour, glycerin, coloring, and flavor oils. When customizing each kit, Taccalite likes to use scents and colors to add to the experience.

“In the explorer kit, the black smells like dirt, the brown smells like wood, and the green smells like grass. The candy kit smells like jelly beans or cotton candy, so the kids get the whole experience! They picked their color, scent, and played with all of the accessories to create an entire scene.” Taccalite said.

Taccalite has always been into charity and giving back to her community. The Operation Underground Railroad has been a charity near and dear to her heart. With this in mind, she decided to give 5% of all proceeds she makes to the Railroad. With the business surrounding dough and her passion for donating, Dough Nation was born.

In the end, this will not be Taccalite’s full-time job, but it is a way to keep her children and other children in the area entertained during the quarantine downtime.

“My kids see what it is like to start a business. It’s a learning
experience. If you have an idea go for it,” Taccalite said.

If interested in trying a sensory kit, head to www.doughnation.shop to learn more.

 

 

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Coding school comes to Coral Springs

“Learn to code. Change the world.”

That’s the motto of theCoderSchool coming to Coral Springs. The school at 10633 Wiles Road is owned and operated by Aditi and Rajiv Ralhan.

The duo will be bringing nearly two decades of technology experience to the school, both having extensive backgrounds in computer science and software development.

Both Aditi and Rajiv moved to South Florida from India. Rajiv came to the United States in 2002 to complete his Masters in computer science at Florida Atlantic University.

Aditi came to Florida to be with her husband in 2007, completing her MBA at Florida Atlantic University.

“We are excited to open our fi rst CoderSchool in Coral Springs,” said Aditi. “Learning how to code gives children the upper hand in their future.” The school accepts students ages 7 to 18. Classes are virtual now but the facility is expected to open by the end of the year.

Visit https://www.thecoderschool.com/locations/coralsprings/ for more information.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ralhan’s emphasize the importance of keeping kids engaged and learning as parents continue to adjust to virtual learning.

“Our school will allow children to work with our code coaches directly, feel accomplished and proud of their work, and the best part is that they will be learning skills that will help them for their future potential careers,” said Aditi.

Founded in 2014 by Hansel Lynn and franchised in 2016, theCoderSchool was built to provide children aged 7 to 18 with a welcoming environment to develop computer programming skills.

theCoderSchool uses a variety of platforms to teach various coding languages, such as HTML, CSS, Python, JavaScript and more. Every lesson is customized with the help of trained Code Coaches® who use a 2-on-1 approach to teaching.

“As we continue to expand our presence throughout the country, it’s critical to find the right franchise partners, like Aditi and Rajiv, who truly know the importance of coding,” added Lynn. “We are excited the Coral Springs location will be opening virtually and in the future expand their options to in-person learning.”

The school has over 45 locations in over 15 states. For more information, visit http://www.thecoderschool.com/.

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Musical education not left behind by COVID-19

During the past several months, COVID-19 has been a roadblock for the educational system. This spring, school classes went virtual, and a lot of extracurricular activities were halted in their tracks.

For parents with kids who are learning to play an instrument, the uncertainty with school bands and lack of in-person classes has been an ongoing challenge. One local music teacher is Glen Friedman from the G-Clef Music Academy in Parkland.

Glen has been teaching his students virtually throughout the summer. As schools open, he is planning to continue to teach virtually as this is key to ensuring his students keep up with their curriculums and not fall behind due to this year’s pandemic limitations.

Music strengthens the mind
Why is music education important for developing minds? A study by Professor Hudziak from the University of Vermont College of Medicine found that the “more a child trained on an instrument, it accelerated cortical organization in attention skill, anxiety management, and emotion control.”

According to Professor Hudziak, in an interview with the Washington Post, music is like an exercise for the brain. “What I was surprised by was the emotional regulatory regions. Everyone in our culture knows if I lift 5-pound, 10-pound, 15-pound weights, my biceps will get bigger. The same is true for the brain. We shouldn’t be surprised we can train the brain.”

Music helps with math
Much of Science, Engineering, and Math is built on the principles of harmonics. One key principle, the Fourier Transform, expresses the world in terms of musical chords. Joseph Fourier, in 1822, first showed the usage of infinite sums of harmonics to describe a signal, which the mathematical transform is now named after. Recently, our modern mobile communications mostly rely on the concept of harmonics to transmit information over the air.

Learning music has been shown to benefit students’mathematical abilities. Researchers from the University of Texas, in a peer-reviewed article for the Journal of Learning through Arts, found “the students who learned through the various music-integrated instructional settings demonstrated increased mathematical ability levels over the intervention period in the present study.”

According to Glen, the best way to learn music is through one-on-one sessions. The individual feedback is important to help develop and improve a student’s skills.

During the pandemic, it hasn’t all been virtual lessons. Glen is part of some virtual big band recordings, too. You can find some of those sessions on YouTube’s “Glen Friedman Music”channel.

If you are deciding how best to keep your child busy after school, improve their focus and emotional control, or just want better grades in math, enroll them in music classes. This is where the arts and sciences intersect.

By Li Pan

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SoFlo Gardening: August 2020

What to Plant

Annuals/Bedding plants: The hottest days of summer limit planting to heat-tolerant vinca, gaillardia, bulbine, and coleus.

Bulbs: Aztec lily, butterfly lily, walking iris, and spider lily can be planted any time of the year, even late summer.

Herbs: Herbs that can be planted from plants (not seeds) include bay laurel, ginger, Mexican tarragon, and rosemary.

Vegetables: Many cool-season crops can be started now as well as a final crop of warm-season vegetables such as lima beans, cucumbers, eggplant, and peppers. Tomatoes can also be planted for the fall garden.

 

 What to Do

Lawns: Determine the cause of any damage to the lawn so the proper remedy is used. Damage from insects, disease, or irrigation failure can produce similar symptoms. Use a sharp mower blade and only remove a third of the grass blade to reduce stress on the lawn.

Palms: Check older palm fronds for yellowing as it may indicate a magnesium or potassium deficiency. Apply an appropriate palm fertilizer.

Poinsettias: Pinch back poinsettias and mums before the end of the month to allow time for buds to form for winter bloom.

Ornamental plants: Rapid growth and leaching rains may result in nutrient deficiencies in some plants. See Nutrient Deficiencies (Landscape Plants): edis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_ nutrient_deficiencies_landscape_plants

Annuals and Perennials: Remove spent blooms, cut back, and fertilize flowering annuals and perennials to extend the season into the fall months.

Source: University of Florida IFAS Extension

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