Speaking of Health...

          There is nothing worse to me than someone who is boring. I would rather be sad, angry, or in great discomfort than be bored. Luckily, I find most people interesting, and it’s rare that someone is boring enough that it affects me. What I’ve discovered, over the years, is that staying healthy doesn’t simply mean just eating well and getting exercise; it means surrounding myself with friends who support and challenge me. Boring people may be supportive, but they are rarely challenging, so I probably don’t want to spend much time with them.

When I meet a new person, or if I am put into a new situation, I have been told that I get very quiet. This is strange for me, since I consider myself opinionated and deeply invested in the livelihood of others. The reason I stay quiet is because I am waiting until I understand the personalities and relationships in my environment. What kind of humour do they have? What different experiences have they lived through? Do they have crazy opinions? I am attracted to the personalities of those who are confident and have lived their lives strangely. They are the people I want to learn from, whom I want to challenge, and have them challenge me.

Bernard is an interesting person. We know this because he has a beautiful moustache.

One of my goals, of late, has been to say truthful things. It’s harder than it sounds. How often do we say we have to go, when in fact we just want to leave a conversation? How often do we tell harmless lies to not offend someone? Thankfully, I keep good company, with people who will challenge me if I say something that isn’t true. I think if I kept boring people around me, I would hold myself less accountable.

I am blessed to be surrounded by people who are interesting, honest and thoughtful. They keep my mind healthy and my conversations sincere. While I think the desire to keep away from boring people is universal, we all need different people in our lives to complement us. What kind of people do you surround yourself with?

Head on over to www.lmacademics.com to read this in Korean and Chinese!

How Do You Stay Healthy?

Here at Little Mountain, we’re growing moustaches and talking health. I didn’t think about my health at all until a few years ago. I had lived my life without noticing how I looked or what I ate, mainly because I had yet to notice any consequences. Then one evening, my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I were celebrating something. I don’t remember what it was, but between us we ate an embarrassing amount of cake. Like a whole cake. It might have been a whole double cake, one stacked on top of the other. Not important.

Because of the overdose sugar, I bounced around the room and acted strangely for the better part of an hour. When I finally calmed down, my wife looked at me and said:

“Mark. Either we eat better, or we go to the gym.”

Instead we did both.

She signed us up for a gym the next day, and for a week I cut sugar from my diet. The change was noticeable almost immediately. I felt better. I looked better. I probably even smelled better. It was the beginning of an important shift in my lifestyle.

Around the same time, I read Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point. If you haven’t read it, the premise is this: small changes can have big effects. Once I started eating better and exercising, I noticed all sorts of other things that I wanted to change. I began dressing well. I was more mindful of the words I chose. I started writing novels. This small change, this simple act of dropping sugar for a short time and going to the gym a few days a week, altered my outlook on life and pushed me towards self-betterment.

Of course, since Hallowe’en has just finished, the weather has been awful, and Christmas is just around the corner, I haven’t been as healthy as I would like to lately. But I now know that I can’t go long without the gym, and there’s only so much junk food I can eat before I don’t like the way I feel. Living healthily is not just an immediate concern; it’s about feeling better for longer.

That’s just me, though. Everyone finds different ways to feel better. What do you do to stay healthy? Or do you regularly eat cake and feel wonderful? If that’s the case, then we can’t be friends.

For more info, go to www.lmacademics.com.

Why I’m Growing a Moustache

            One of my deepest, oldest desires has been to grow a beard. I would love to have fiery red hair all over my face, thick and beautiful like a Viking, to keep me warm during the winter and manly during the summer. They’re remarkably attractive. Unfortunately, I inherited my father’s genes, and whenever I grow anything, it’s barely noticeable. Still, once a year, there’s a month where I get to try my best anyhow.

            Of course, I’m not growing a beard this year. I’m growing a moustache. It will barely be visible and it will look awesome. November is a great time of the year, when men feel comfortable growing facial hair of all shapes and sizes, and women wait patiently until their husbands, boyfriends, brothers, and friends shave. All in the name of a project called Movember.

            Movember began in Australia, as a way to raise awareness about prostate cancer. The logic? Only men can get prostate cancer, and only men can grow facial hair. The rules are simple: men must shave completely on November 1^st, and as the month goes on, trim their moustaches in their favourite style. The movement has almost reached 1 million participants, and it’s expanding fast every year.

            I grow my moustache for two reasons. First, it’s fun. Moustaches have gone out of style since the 70s, and there is no other time of year where it’s excusable to have hair below your nose. Every other month of the year, I miss it. I miss fiddling with it, and I miss getting food stuck in the hair. Second, it’s for a great cause. There are so many great charities out there, but this is one that I feel passionately about. As a man, it’s reassuring to know that there’s a concerted effort out there to promote health for men.

            Please take the time, and go to http://ca.movember.com/team/603461. Donate to the Little Mountain Learning Academy Movember team. Bernard, Bill, Jose, Mark, and Ryan will be growing moustaches as a group, and we hope you considering donating whatever you can.

            We want to hear from you. What do you think about Movember moustaches? Are you excited to see all the manly expressions of manliness? Or are you counting the days until they’re all gone?

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