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How Community Theatre Improved My Health

April 22, 2025 By Elaine Ambrose Leave a Comment

I grew up during the sixties on a farm near the village of Wendell, Idaho, when the population was 1,000. Our high school didn’t have a drama department, and any student productions were presented in the elementary school lunchroom. Acting was not regarded as a viable career, but I included the possibility on my bucket list of things to try before I died.

After five decades of raising children, working in various jobs, and retiring in Eagle, Idaho, I decided to audition for community theatre. I was 72 and recuperating from heart surgery due to cardiomyopathy. My new defibrillator was a physical reminder that my life and heartbeat were regulated by a device installed beneath my collarbone. I experienced shortness of breath with any activity, so I decided acting would be a fun way to experiment with breath control and complete my bucket list. I was correct.

Acting in the Eagle Theatre Company has improved my mental and physical health. Memorizing lines challenges my aging brain, and delivering the lines helps with breath control. The audience applause is a bonus advantage.

My first audition was a failure. I was given the role of Madam Arcati in “Blithe Spirit.” After rehearsing for a month, I admitted I couldn’t reach Act III and recite hundreds of lines because I ran out of breath. I relinquished the role. My next audition was for a smaller role, Miss Prism in “The Importance of Being Earnest.” I loved the role, and the play was a hit.

I loved the role of Miss Prism in “The Importance of Being Earnest.”

I’m currently playing Ozella Meeks in “Southern Fried Funeral.” The role only contains 100 lines, but I’ve tackled the character with all the sass I can muster. I’m thrilled with the positive response.

The high schools around Boise offer amazing theatre departments and professional stages with performance facilities that can seat hundreds of students. Young people have advantages to learn how to act and can utilize these skills in future professional capacities. It’s a long distance from the farming community of Wendell.

I intend to audition for future plays. There are several community theatres in the area, and I hope to find small but clever roles to play. I breathe better with every rehearsal and look forward to meeting new cast members and directors. Community Theatre provided the perfect anecdote to my aging attitude and challenged aptitude. This weekend at two sold-out shows, I look forward to when the stage manager says, “Take Your Places.”

Write from the Heart – A Workshop for the Senses

February 25, 2025 By Elaine Ambrose

My interactive workshop titled “Write from the Heart” explores how to use emotions and senses to inspire your writing. Musical selections with prompts guide writers through various stages of their life. Participants can volunteer to read their work to the group.

The workshop also includes items to feel, see, smell, and touch. The goal of the two-hour workshop is for writers to follow their natural senses to create authentic paragraphs on a variety of subjects. All workshop attendees receive journals, pens, books, and heart-healthy snacks.

The February workshop was sponsored by Tesoro Valle Gifts in Eagle, and fees were $25. Future workshops will be announced soon.

When a Pastor Passes

February 3, 2025 By Elaine Ambrose

Reverend Philip Moran came to Boise in 1991 to serve as pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church. He was young, age 35, and brought his charming wife and baby son. My children were young, and we attended Covenant. I appreciated his congenial style, musical talent, goofy jokes, and passion for the Gospel. He remained at Covenant for twenty years.

I have fond memories of Pastor Phil. I helped with several children’s programs at Covenant, and I remember one long meeting with volunteers. After a tedious and repetitive discussion, Pastor Phil finally said, “We’ve spent two hours organizing a 45-minute agenda. Time’s up!”

After I moved my mother to an Assisted Living facility near Covenant, he brought her communion and talked with her. In 2014, he drove 100 miles to speak at her funeral in Wendell.

Hundreds of people attended his service on February 1, and the event was shown online. One of the speakers asked guests to raise their hands if Pastor Phil had counseled with them, spoken at their family funerals, or married family members. All the hands were raised, including mine, and the speaker asked Pastor Phil’s family to turn around and look at all the raised hands as visual proof of his lasting legacy.

Videos at funerals always make me weep. I watched with tissues as photos appeared of a spirited boy, a bright, young pastor, a positive speaker, a loving husband, father, and grandfather, and finally as a quiet man of 68 afflicted with the debilitating disease of ALS.

Pastor Phil was an extraordinary Christian who made his daily walk with Jesus look easy. As one of the speakers said at his service, “He’s home.”

New Book and Journal for Grandkids Premieres Dec 6 in Eagle, Idaho

December 4, 2024 By Elaine Ambrose

Details about the book and journal are listed on Amazon.

Your grandchildren grow up quickly, and you don’t want to miss important opportunities to create lasting memories. This book offers 30 ideas for fun, inexpensive activities to share. Each activity has been tested and approved by genuine grandchildren and prove experiences can be enjoyed without electronic devices.

Grandchildren are encouraged to write or color pictures to tell stories about each adventure. Age recommendations and supply lists are included for each activity.

Snacks are required. Batteries are not.

Activities include:

Walk barefoot in the grass
Paint rocks, design a flag, write a letter
Sing, dance, play with puppets
Cook a meal
Write and tell a story

Don’t wait any longer to plan an adventure. Your grandchildren are growing older – and so are you!

Benefits:
– Create a strong bond with your grandchildren and become a positive role model in their lives
– Pass on traditions and stories to future generations
– Prove good times can be enjoyed without electronic devices

What’s inside:
– Daily journal prompts for children to write or draw about their experience and create a keepsake
– Recommended age categories and supply lists for each activity
– Low-cost or free activities that won’t break the budget
– Opportunities to share activity-related snacks, tell stories, and create lasting memories with your grandchildren

Grandparent Role:
– Prepare a comfortable environment for the activities
– Provide snacks for you and your grandchildren to enjoy
– Remind them that electronic devices are not allowed during the activities

Grandchildren Role:
– Have fun and be open to trying new things
– Leave electronic distractions behind and fully engage in the activities

A Storytelling Journal for Grandkids is offered as a separate companion book.

My $625 Pillowcase

December 3, 2024 By Elaine Ambrose

This pillowcase is for my broken but resilient heart.

I made a mistake using an online payment center, and there is not one human being on earth who can help me. Here’s my latest story of imperfection:

My friend Connie McLeod in Louisiana creates unique and gorgeous pillowcases by “hammering” fresh flora onto cotton fabric. Through the process, pigments from the leaves and flowers transfer to the fabric as a stain. Last week, she posted photos on Facebook of her latest examples which included hempweed vine, vinca, cosmos, and oxalis from her garden.

I ordered two pillowcases at $75 each, and she sent me her Venmo account name.

Unfortunately, I sent the money to a person with a similar name – but not Connie. (Yes, I know this mess is all my fault, but the comedy of errors makes a good story.)

After realizing the mistake, Connie and I spent time and energy contacting Venmo to make corrections. Venmo does not respond to humans, even after calling, texting, and emailing the support team several times.

I sent $150 to Connie at the correct address on Venmo.

Because Venmo didn’t help, I canceled the incorrect payment through my bank account that is attached to Venmo and received a $20 charge to cancel the check. My bank took the fee but did not cancel the payment.

This pillowcase reminds me of hope and freedom.

Then, for reasons known only to mischievous trolls inside Venmo operations, they decided to pay both addresses again for another charge of $300. I tried for hours to explain the facts to Venmo through email, phone calls, and text messages.

Their support team said I could pay $5 for expert advice from an online source called “JustAnswer Team.” I paid $5 and discovered I had signed up for membership to a law firm that would charge me $55 a month. I had a few days to cancel, so I waited for the legal team to give me advice. They provided a form letter I could send to Venmo. I could have written the form letter myself. I cancelled the membership fee.

Now I cannot log into my Venmo account because it’s frozen unless I pay their extortion of $300. They will not take a smaller amount.

I can fly roundtrip from Boise to Baton Rouge, Louisiana for $600. My pillowcases are now at $625:

$150 – sent to wrong account

$150 – sent to correct account

$300 – extortion from Venmo to unfreeze my account

$ 20 – cancel check fee

$ 5 – Legal answer with potential $55 a month membership fee

I sent the expertly worded form letter to Venmo and am waiting for a robot to reply with the same answer: “Please contact our support team.”

There is one positive sparkle to this dark journey: I frantically sent a message to the “wrong” person and explained my mistake. She graciously returned the $150, so technically the current expenses are only $475.

I’m cautiously optimistic the pillowcases will arrive this week. I need them to cover some pillows so I can take a long nap.

Gratuitous plug: Besides pillowcases, Connie also creates other treasures, including note cards and framed art. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram. Her email is: [email protected]. Please notice: her name is Connie McLeod – not Connie McCloud.