Blogs can be Therapeutic

September 4, 2010

It is my humble opinion that my working on a Blog is a means of therapeutic treatment for me. For one thing, I had to look up the word "therapeutic" and find out how it was spelled before I could even type it in here!

When I was 6 years old, I was in the first grade in Reynolds grade school (or the East School as it was also known) in Spencer,Iowa. I lived on Grade avenue in a fire station and walked 9 blocks to school each day. If I had lived on the other side of Grand avenue (the West side) I could have gone to Lincoln school, only 5 blocks away. Be that as it may, I liked Reynolds school because it was close to my grandmother's house and in bad weather I walked to her house for lunch instead of the 9 blocks home to the fire station for lunch.

Back to my story..... Back in the 40's beginning reading was taught in 1st grade. I had a lot of difficulty with reading and it wasn't until the last few days of school I discovered why. They gave us a sight test at the end of the year and when I got home after the sight test that afternoon I told my mother....Mom, "they covered up my good eye!"

It was discovered that I only had 19% vision in my right eye and as a result was not able to see very well. In later years it was also learned that I was dyslectic that didn't help in my ability to read. Plus my school was experimenting with "sight reading" instead of phonics which made it even worse. I remember I had to go to a medical doctor to get fitted with corrective lenses and even with the glasses I was still not seeing 20/20.

Fortunately back then they hadn't started labeling kids as learning disabled and I was never put in a special class. I ended up having to learn my own way. My own way was by memorizing things. I learned by rote learning. That is also why I was always a very poor speller.

I now tell people with a smile that I didn't know I was dumb so I made it through grade school. and graduated from college using my own learning technique. I read very little, just memorized my lessons.

I did very poorly with multiple choice tests because I normal could not read the questions fast enough and ended up not finishing the test of guessing at the answers. True/False I figured I had a 50-50 chance. Essay type tests I shined on...I was able to put the answers in my own words. I also did well in oral tests.

I ended up graduating with a BA in Business Management and Graphic Arts (double major). Then in later years was granted an Honorary Doctorate degree fro the University of South Dakota for my work in showing how I was able to use my Art training in Business with a family business that my mother and I founded in the early 60's. I ask no payment for these lectures and was awarded the honorary PhD because of that gift I had made.

So you might begin to understand why I consider these Blogs as Therapy for me now as I am getting older. Besides it gives me something to do.

Well bye for now...see you next time! .... Dr Dave