College Life of a Retired Senior by Yvonne Blackwood
Seven years after she retired from the Royal Bank of Canada, ending a thirty-seven-year career, Yvonne Blackwood surprised her friends and family by returning to school to pursue an English degree. She craves knowledge and is motivated by four powerful reasons: To add texture to her writing; to ward off dementia by exercising her brain muscles with her studies; to add ongoing structure to her life by attending classes regularly; to inspire her two young grandsons to attend university full-time when they graduate from high school.
Blackwood attends Canada’s third-largest university and struggles with maintaining her established lifestyle, being in class with hard-to-connect-with millennials, and a shocking diagnosis in her final year. She stumbles upon several obstacles in her quest to earn the degree. They include two strikes at the university, one lasting 143 days; the lockdown of the campus when the WHO declares COVID-19 a pandemic; and hospitalization. The university’s motto is Tentanda Via—”the way must be tried.” Blackwood weaves this theme and the metaphor of climbing a mountain into the narrative as her guiding light. When some situations become almost unbearable, and she thinks of quitting, she perseveres, relying on her faith. She writes, “What I didn’t know was how much the pursuit of the degree would inform me, challenge me, satisfy me, and drive me to consider giving up on more than one occasion.”
Blueink Review writes: “Blackwood’s appealing attitude and resilience keep readers turning pages, rooting for her success. Ultimately, this is an inspiring story of an older woman’s quest for knowledge. A Reader’s Guide is included to spark discussion.”
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Author Bio:
Yvonne Blackwood is the author of four adult non-fiction books: Into Africa: A Personal Journey, Will That Be Cash or Cuffs? Into Africa the Return, and College Life of a Retired Senior. She has also published three children’s picture books: Nosey Charlie Comes to Town, Nosey Charlie Goes to Court, and Nosey Charlie Chokes on a Wiener. She is an award-winning short-story writer and has contributed stories to several anthologies, including Human Kindness, Canadian Voices, and Wordscape. She has published articles in magazines including More of Our Canada, Adelaide, InTouch, and Green Prints and has written columns for the Toronto Star, Pride Newspaper, and The African Connection. Blackwood enjoyed an illustrious banking career with the Royal Bank of Canada, retiring after thirty-seven years. Blackwood is a graduate of the University of Technology and York University with a BA majoring in English. She is a Fellow of The Institute of Canadian Bankers and an alumnus of the Humber College School of Writers.
Blackwood collects Oscar winning Best Picture movies starting from 1929.