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This time of year
December came up quickly this year—even more so than usual. As my husband and I were decorating the Christmas tree last night, we were both in disbelief that it had been a whole year since we’d gone through this ritual. Each year I continue to acquire more ornaments even though there is a house rule that every single one goes up on the tree. This includes decades-old handmade ornaments (think popsicle stick snowman) along with the newer, glitzier glass creations. Some—even the more recent additions—bring a feeling of nostalgia. I’m likely to get a little caught up with that feeling this time of year and I don’t think I’m alone. Author, Michael Chabon, wrote about nostalgia in The New Yorker, “Nostalgia, most truly and most meaningfully, is the emotional experience—always momentary, always fragile—of having what you lost or never had, of seeing what you missed seeing, of meeting the people you missed knowing, of sipping coffee in the storied cafés that are now hot-yoga studios.” I don’t think of myself as overly sentimental, but this time of year catches me in a certain way. It’s remembering the imperfect holiday celebrations from the past and embellishing the stories a little more each year. It’s knowing that some of our favorite people aren’t here with us anymore but understanding that they would want the happiness to continue on without them. It’s somewhere between a laugh and a cry. It’s watching our favorite holiday movies. It’s eating our favorite treats without guilt (hey, it’s only once a year). It’s spending time with our loved ones and effortlessly creating memories for the future while being thankful for all that we have right now. Wishing you and yours a joyful holiday season!
Stay safe and healthy,
Tracy Jacobs
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Osher Holiday Break
Osher at Towson University will be closed for holiday break from Friday, December 20 through Friday, January 3. We will be back in the office on Monday, January 6.
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Important Dates
- Registration opens: February 4
- Session I: March 3–28
- Session II: April 7–May 2
Class will not be held March 31–April 4
Note: Schedule subject to change.
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Through a special collaboration with the Osher National Resource Center at Northwestern University, we are offering 6-week online courses. These courses meet via Zoom and each is 90 minutes long. Space is limited, so register early. Each course is $80. Osher membership is required. Join or renew now for the 2024–2025 membership year (July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025).
The deadline to register is December 16.
- First Class: A History of the Post Office in the United States, Tuesdays starting January 14
- Buddhist Philosophy, Meditation, and Ritual: In India and Beyond, Tuesdays starting January 21
- Reclaiming Native Ground: Native America Since 1900, Wednesdays starting January 22
- Storytelling and Self, Thursdays starting January 23
- The Next Generation’s Legacy of the Holocaust, Thursdays starting January 23
- Huck Finn’s America, Mondays starting January 27
- Color and Symbolism in Art History, Mondays starting January 27
- Modern War: What Is It Good For? Tuesdays starting January 28
- The Secret Life of Familiar Birds, Wednesdays starting January 29
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The Conservation of Elephants Using Honey Bees in Tanzania with Josephine (Jody) Johnson, Ph.D.
Wednesday, January 8 at 1:00 p.m.
Zoom
African bush elephants (Loxodonta Africana) migrate along north-south and east-west routes in Tanzania, an east African country just south of the equator. As these animals migrate, they feed on trees, fruits, and crops such as tomatoes, corn, and melons, which might be the only source of income for a village. To avoid deadly conflicts between elephants and irate villagers, beehive fences, occupied by the aggressive Africanized honey bees (Apis mellifera scutellata), are built along the edges of village croplands to deter elephants, who dislike these bees. The beehive fences help to conserve elephants (~80 % success rate). Other threats, such as poaching, imperil elephants. Sustainability will be discussed.
Dr. Josephine (Jody) Johnson has a PhD in toxicology and conducts research at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She studies honey bee diseases and the exploration of novel compounds to arrest parasites that plague bees. For the last five years in her spare time, she has been working on two related projects in Tanzania. The first project is building honey bee hive fences to deter migrating African elephants from raiding village croplands, thereby avoiding deadly human-elephant conflicts and conserving elephants. The second project is raising awareness and finding funds to build an elephant and bee research center in a wildlife corridor at the base of Mt Kilimanjaro, the purpose of which is to generate creative solutions to conflicts that arise over land use by humans for agriculture versus wildlife needs for food. She has recently retired from teaching college classes in environmental science, chemistry, physical science, world pollinators, and sustainability. She has spoken at conferences nationally and internationally and currently maintains a personal apiary of 22 hives.
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Comedy vs. The Apocalypse with David Misch
Wednesday, January 15 at 1:00 p.m.
Zoom
Nowadays everyone’s inbox is filled with memes, cartoons, and jokes about our continuing political, economic, and environmental disasters. And even though each joke is another reminder of a horrible situation, we laugh. Why? Because we must; laughter is critical in terrible times because it reminds us we can still feel joy, and that the purpose of life is to do more than just survive. No matter the circumstances, people always crave what author Phillip Pullman calls “the value of simple delight.” We will look at how comedy fights tragedy with a different kind of distancing: lightening frightening things by making them seem ridiculous. And laughter’s benefits are more than just psychological. Physicians have long known that humor has real health effects. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine,” says no less an authority than God (Proverbs 17:22). From examples that include Mel Brooks, Samuel Beckett, Sarah Silverman, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel & Hardy, and Key & Peele see how comedy has always laughed at tragedy – from the Black Death to the Holocaust to 9/11—how it is happening now and how humor can help us make it to tomorrow.
David Misch wrote and produced stage and screen comedy for more than 40 years; his credits include “Mork and Mindy,” “The Muppets Take Manhattan,” and "Saturday Night Live.” He’s also an author, playwright, songwriter, recovered stand-up comic, and teacher. He has spoken at the Smithsonian Institution, 92 Y, Yale, Columbia, the American Film Institute, Grammy Museum, Sony Pictures, Oxford University, Austin Film Festival, Raindance Film Festival (London), and many other venues.
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Osher Gentle Flow Yoga with Tammy O’Donnell
Free to Osher Members
This class will combine a series of yoga postures through a gentler, lighter paced flow. Emphasis will be on proper alignment and breath work to build strength, flexibility, and balance. Postures will include standing, seated, and reclined positions. Although this class is appropriate for beginners, students should be capable of moving with relative ease from standing to seated on the floor and from the floor to standing. Students should also expect poses which position their head below their heart such as in a forward fold as well as have a level of comfort practicing standing balance poses.
Tammy O'Donnell is a 200 Hour YTT and Iron Yoga certified instructor. She currently teaches Vinyasa Flow, Hatha Yoga and Yoga Sculpt at Razz Yoga Studio in Jacksonville MD and OneLife Fitness in Hunt Valley MD. She holds an MS in Organizational Development from Johns Hopkins University and worked for Proctor and Gamble, GBMC, and MedStar Health in areas of leadership development, team dynamics, and change management across her 30-year career. Yoga is a key component of Tammy's personal wellness practices. It provides the physical, mental, and emotional focus that allows her to achieve her goals and to be her best self. Tammy wants people in her classes to experience strength in movement, peacefulness in stillness, and a greater connection to their bodies.
Please let us know if you would like to participate in a gentle yoga class with other Osher members by contacting osher@towson.edu. We are gauging interest level and will make plans accordingly.
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Support Osher at Towson University. Your tax-deductible contribution helps to provide a rich experience for our members and a vibrant, affordable program for years to come.
Donate online through the link below. If you prefer to donate by check, please make check payable to “Towson University Foundation, Inc.” and note Osher fund in the memo line. Mail to: Towson University Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 17165, Baltimore, MD 21297-0219.
If you would like to honor a friend or loved one with a donation in their memory, please consider supporting Osher at Towson University with a gift to the Osher Excellence Fund.
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