Karen Kow

Directed by Rob Reiner and starring Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman and Sean Hayes. The Bucket List tells a story of two terminally ill men who escaped from a cancer ward and head off on a trip to do the things they’ve always wanted to do before they die.

You’re thinking two men…. hmm… but it’s no Rush Hour. This movie reveals fantastic script writing including highly intelligent jokes. It’s not the kind of story that makes you feel sorry and sad. It’s a story of two very different men from two completely different worlds, meeting each other, putting up with each other, and slowly, healing each other through their friendship.

I love the coffee story!! Haha…

The experiences and feelings portrayed are very real. Could happen to anyone faced with terminal illness. However, I do believe that not everyone would have a friend like Jack Nicholson with so much money, and have a personal assistant who could plan a trip from Paris to Cairo to London etc…

Don’t expect much action from this movie. It can be quite slow, and you’ll need to know and love the English language to appreciate the conversations in the movie. The ending was very nice and heartwarming.

Definitely a good choice after working all day!! At least it brings some meaning into life and encourage an alternative perspective

This week has been a crazy, crazy week! Over stimulating and exhausting. I am glad the weekend is here! At least this weekend that I am not working. Haha…

After an incredibly long day today, I did two sessions of yoga, thought I was going to collapse. I have completely no stamina! After dinner, I went to watch The Water Horse!

It is heart warming, not as funny as I expected it to be, but definitely worth watching at least once. Especially if you’ve always wondered about the Loch Ness monster. It was really heartbreaking when the water horse, Crusoe, grew too big and could not live in Angus’ toilet bowl or bath tub anymore and he had to let Crusoe into the lake.

The most disturbing part was when they showed how a warm, funny, friendly water horse could become violent and defensive after experiencing a horrible incident caused by humans. I found that really sad.

If you know at least a little about the Loch Ness monster, or have seen the most famous picture of it somewhere at some point in your life (if not see below), you will find it hilarious when they described how this picture came about!

The ending revolved around how Angus tried to help Crusoe escape from human cruelty in the lake to the freedom of the sea. Sounds familiar?

Yeah… This is the European version of “Free Willy”.

Almost all of us have felt inspired to write at some point in our lives. Whether compelled by a teacher, a special experience, or by our own creativity, the result of this form of expression tends to remain constant: a feeling of relief and accomplishment ensues after the session. Because of the powerful cathartic experience that can result when one puts pen to paper, it’s no wonder that with time more and more people choose to practice therapeutic writing. It is called therapeutic writing when initiated and guided by a psychologist, otherwise it is also known as blogging. Haha..

Several interventions exist on-line, writing group leaders work in hospitals with patients dealing with their mental and physical illnesses and in university departments aiding student self-awareness and self-development. When administered at a distance it is useful for those who prefer to remain personally anonymous and are not ready to disclose their most private thoughts and anxieties in a face to face situation.

As with most forms of therapy, writing therapy is adapted and used to work with a wide range of psychoneurotic illnesses including bereavement, desertion and abuse. Many of these interventions take the form of classes where clients write on specific themes chosen by their psychologist or therapist. Assignments may include writing unsent letters to selected individuals, alive or dead, followed by imagined replies from the recipient or parts of the patient’s body, or a dialogue with the recovering alcoholic’s bottle of alcohol.

With anxiety disorder, rather than pushing thoughts of fear, self-doubt or distress of any kind into dark corners of the mind, it may be better to express the particulars of such thoughts. By doing so, it is possible to bring an understanding of the messages that root and feed the detrimental thinking habits. When one finds insight into the nature of the problem, the hurtful messages will be reduced or resolved, easing stress and facilitating a more satisfying life.

The reasons behind expressive catharsis are still largely a matter of speculation, but it has been suggested that expression relieves inhibitory processes in the nervous system that result from suppressing thoughts and desires. Thus, therapy through writing can help someone by allowing relief from the effects of the forces of suppression by opening avenues for self-expression and exploration.

Top 3 things to remember in therapeutic writing:

1) Don’t be pedantically fixated on grammar, tenses and the rules of your choice of language.

2) Write as if no one will ever read it. Write for yourself and not for anyone else.

3) Be honest and truthful in your expressions and thoughts.