WEEKEND ENGAGEMENT TOPICS: WEEK 217/ WEEKEND AT REST

Well, I really need to rest. Disconnect from all those conflicts that have arisen after last Sunday's presidential elections. That's why I decided to reduce to a minimum the information on the subject that since very early in the morning is being sent through all the social networks, photos, videos, insults. It's really stressful. There is a lot of emotionality unleashed.

This morning, after breakfast, I went to a park near my house, La Floresta Park, to be in contact with nature, to look at the trees there, some of them are now full of flowers. Recently, the park was refurbished and it looks very nice. It really felt good to breathe the fresh air under the trees and take a brisk walk. At my age it is good to exercise frequently.

The mayor's office closed it for several months, planted grass, changed the rules of use so that the park could be preserved as it is now. Previously, different groups used to do sports and physical training activities such as yoga, taichi and also neighbours used to take their dogs to run there and ended up damaging the park. Now neither people nor dogs are allowed to step on the grass and groups of people cannot gather there to exercise. I will show you some pictures I took with my mobile phone camera.

Some years ago I realised how important it was for me to take care of my physical, mental and spiritual health, to take care of what nourishes my body, my mind and my soul. There is wisdom that comes with time, with age. For the last few months I have been trying to change my diet and eat healthier foods, cut down on flour and processed foods and eat more fresh food. My body is thanking me, I feel much better now.

I like cooking, I enjoy it, it relaxes me. On Saturday I usually go to the market. Some of my local market stalls were closed because of the riots that have been going on for the last week, but happily others were open. Come with me to see some of the places I visited to buy fresh vegetables and fruits: banana, which I love, carrot, watercress, courgette, celery, spring onion, red onion, apple. I also bought some spices that I like to add to food and I had run out: turmeric, pepper, cumin, cinnamon.

I am a writer and an educator in the area of literature, obviously there are two activities that I really enjoy and I will be doing them this weekend, reading and writing. This will help me to relax and have enjoyable times for me, which will connect me to the world of books and writing. I have been interested in literature written by women or about women characters for many years. I am interested in how women write about themselves or how male writers portray women. I believe that in the last decades women have taken a leading role in society.

For some days now I have been reading a very interesting novel by the Paraguayan writer Augusto Roa Bastos, which my beloved Daniel "Madame Sui" gave me as a present. The plot is based on a real character, a tragic historical figure. A very young woman, of Japanese descent, orphaned of both parents at the age of thirteen, who was one of the lovers of a military man who ruled Paraguay for thirty-five years, between 1954 and 1989, Alfredo Strossner. The young woman came to his attention when she won the Miss Paraguay beauty contest. In the plot, desire and power come together, innocence perverted in the labyrinth of political intrigues.

Daniel and I are reading together the novel "Rayuela" by Julio Cortázar, we have been commenting on some chapters. It is very nice to be able to read and comment with another person on a book that we like. I have read "Rayuela" several times, but until now I had read it alone.

I hope you had a good weekend. Thank you for your reading and your support. I hope you enjoyed joining me in the activities I did.