Giving and Gratitude

THANK YOU KARIN & WALTER ZITZELSPERGER

Feeling grateful is a form of savouring and being mindful of all your blessings – human, natural and man-made. Try it?  Take a mindful walk between classes and both savour and be thankful for the breeze, the gardens, the sunlight and blue skies and the people you pass just for a few minutes. You’ll be amazed at how your mood will be lifted by the time you get to your next class. (Walters, L. The Strength Switch, 2017)

On the other hand, showing kindness to others gives a big boost to our own well-being. We should savour it too by recounting how they were lifted by our thoughtfulness.  Equally, tell friends, family, teachers that you’re grateful for them and direct your attention to letting them know that you appreciate the gifts and services they have given you.  Seniors will be reflecting on this now as they exit school one final time and begin the rest of their lives.  It could be as simple as a comment or post-it note?

We were recently in receipt of a kindness – a donation of a prized book collection.  I asked Karin Zitzelsperger if I could take her photo to acknowledge that she and her husband Walter decided to donate their Classics collection to Smithfield SHS Resource Centre.  We hope it makes Karin and Walter feel expansive to know that we will find a very good home for the Complete Works of Charles Dickens and the other items.  We are planning to gentrify our Fiction section early next year.  The Zitzelsperger’s Dickens collection will have pride of place in our new Classics section.  We do hold a good many classic novels but Karin and Walter’s gift will give that section a real boost.  Other sections planned include: Adventure, Suspense, Biography, Humour  etc.  You heard it first here, but call in first thing next year to check we have ‘made good’ on this promised rennovation.

Karin Zitzelsperger donates her Charles Dickens collection.

NANOWRIMO HAS BEGUN

On the subject of gratitude. A big thank you to Senior, Eryn, who is taking time to mentor our writer’s group through a very challenging initiative – the writing of a novel in just ONE month.  The grit, motivation and organization required is our biggest challenge.  Participants can still sign up these first few days in November but should try to make the Wednesday meetings for support and boosts to your word count. One day down – 2% finished my novel draft.  How about you?

AUDIO BOOKS

With resources all needing to come back for stocktake before the Christmas holidays, we’re encouraging students to ease off on borrowing them by the end of November.  You can read our eBooks and participate in our free trial of AudioBooks by using your Smartphone, Table or Computer to borrow and read from our online Wheelers Website.  Download ePlatform today for your phone or tablet and let us know if you need help.

DISPLAYS

Horror stories have been moving since we whipped up a quick Halloween display. Scary stories will definitely become a new fiction section next year.  Marsupial Lion from the Queensland museum has also been on the floor for the past 2 weeks.