It’s been almost four months since we arrived in Florida for the winter. The RV has spent the winter in a storage lot. I haven’t done any traveling other than flying home twice to have some dental work done. So, it’s been mostly a stay-put type of winter for me. But my lack of travel doesn’t mean I haven’t been busy.

Fort Myers Beach has become our winter home. In the early years, we did all the tourist type stuff that’s available in the area.

This year I’ve been very busy so I thought I’d write a post about what I’ve been doing in Florida this winter.

Learning Spanish

Later this year, I hope to take a trip to Spain and walk part of the Camino de Santiago. The Camino is an ancient 500-mile footpath that goes from the French border to the city of Santigo near the west coast of Spain. It’s a very popular walking pilgrimage across rural northern Spain. Over 300,000 pilgrims walk the Camino every year.

This winter, I’ve been doing lots of walking to get my legs in shape for this trip. I also decided to take a Spanish class this winter so I could converse when I get to Spain. I signed up for an adult education class offered by the Lee County School District. Every Wednesday night, I’ve been going to Spanish class learning to speak, read, and write Spanish, It’s been a while since I’ve had to do homework, but overall It’s been a good course. Mi profesora Barbara es excelente.

I practice over the phone with my son who is also taking advanced Spanish in college. I also practice with a friend who works at a local Mexican restaurant.. I’m not fluent but I can ask basic questions, get directions, and orde food at a Mexican restaurant. Este viejo perro ha aprendido un nuevo truco!

Update: Walking the Camino is off the schedule for now. Maybe in a year or two, if I’m still in shape.

Yoga Class Twice a Week

I’ve always wanted to take a yoga class to help with relaxation, relieve stress, and improve my flexibility. I’m still pretty active but as I get older I notice more stiffness in my muscles. When I get up in the morning, sometimes I feel like The Tin Man with severe rust. I also noticed that my range of motion was getting less.

The park where we live in FL offers a variety of fitness classes for geezers. So when we arrived in November, I signed up for a yoga class. I met the instructor, Alysa, and told her my limitations with an ostomy (no laying on my stomach and not too much on core stress). Alysa has been great helping with the various poses. I go twice a week. There are 3-4 brave guys and over 40 women in the class. Some of the poses can be tough and my body can’t bend well in certain joints. But I follow Alysa’s advice of just doing what I can.

After 2 months of yoga, my flexibility and balance have greatly improved. I have less stiffness in the morning and can almost touch my toes. It’s also a good work out and very relaxing. I now do some yoga stretches every morning and will make yoga a lifelong practice for as long as I can.

Update: All inside classes were canceled because of Covid-19. So, I’m doing yoga sola 🙁

Volunteering at My Church

Last year, I offered to help out in the office at my local FL church. I worked one morning a week doing various administrative tasks in the office.

When I returned this year, the office manager was eager for me to help again. This year, I’ve been working one morning (sometimes two) each week doing data entry, handling various marketing tasks for publicizing church events, helping with the church newsletter, providing photos for the church website, and anything else the office manager needs help with.

I enjoy helping out at the church. It lets me use my technology skills to do positive meaningful work. I’ve gotten to know the new pastor and many more of the church members and attendees.

Volunteering and helping others has always been one of the most rewarding things I do.

Bible Study Class

I enjoy studying the Bible. It’s a key activity for maintaining and growing my faith in God. This year I signed up for a 12-week course at the Faith UMC in Fort Myers (about 2.5 miles from my home) studying the prophet books in the Old Testament. These are the books like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekial, Amos, Nahum, Micah, Zephania, and several more, Our study is going thru most of the books from a historical perspective.

The prophet books don’t tend to get a lot of attention because most people like to focus on the “feel-good messages” and Jesus’s teachings that are in the New Testament. God used many prophets to foretell and warn his people about what would happen if they follow his ways. Most of what the prophets foretold is not good. But it’s a message that God wanted to be told. The prophet books contain descriptions of what God did / will do when people do not follow his ways.

The course has been good and involves lots of reading each day to prepare for class. Our study group meets on Tuesday afternoon to discuss what we’ve read and learned.

Update: We did 10 classes and then the church canceled all group meetings because of Covid-19. I’m finishing up the last two study lessons on my own.

Sunday and Prayer Time

Sunday is a day that I look forward to. It’s a day I focus on God and to get recharged. I attend church at the Beach UMC where I volunteer. The Beach UMC holds a traditional worship. Before and after the service, I get to engage with my church community, which grows to about 150 people during the winter months. This year I volunteered to do some of the BIble readings during the service. The Bible was meant to be read aloud and I enjoy each time I get to read a passage during the service.

I also like to spend some time in prayer on Sundays. The Beach UMC church is not a quiet prayer space. There’s a lot of socializing before and after the service. But I found a wonderful spot nearby to pray. About 3 miles away from the Beach church is the San Damiano Monastery of St Clare. The monastery is home to a group of Poor Nuns of St. Clare. They are a small cloistered group but welcome the public to pray in their chapel.

The setting of their monastery is a peaceful sheltered oasis in the middle of busy Estero Island. The chapel is small but quiet. It’s the perfect place to engage in prayer with the Lod. I usually spend 30-45 minutes praying in the chapel each Sunday. Although the Poor Nuns and chapel are affiliated with the Catholic Church, God always listens to prayers not matter who or where you are.

Bike Riding and Some PickleBall

I’ve been riding my new e-bike everywhere. I’m so glad I got the e-bike. I ride it everywhere. It’s my main mode of transportation here in Florida. I ride it to all my classes, ride it to Walmart, ride it to work, and ride it to church on Sunday. The battery gives me at least 50 miles of riding. It makes going over the Sky Bridge effortless. I ride about 50 miles each week. My bike is a Class 1 e-bike, which means I still have to pedal to make it go. Although the electric motor makes pedaling easier, it still gives me a workout when I ride.

I have been playing pickleball but not as much as prior years. The park where we live has six courts. I usually play once each week when there is casual play. I don’t play to win or compete in the ladders. I just play to have a good time and meet some of the people. It’s always a fun time.

At Lighthouse Beach on Sanibel Island

So that’s what I’ve been up to this winter. Not too much touristy stuff. I’ve made it down to the beach a few times – both at Fort Myers Beach and over on Sanibel Island.

Update

I started writing this prior to the Coronavirus outbreak, so much has changed in the past week. There’s no more classes, no church more attendance or volunteer work, no pickleball, and no going to the beach. Everything has been canceled and closed. We’re now packing up to head home to ride out the virus there in New England.

I have been blessed with everything I was able to do this winter. The current situation with the coronavirus has us all making some dramatic changes. Things may look uncertain, but I am optimistic that with God’s help we’ll get through this.