by Sherrill Fulghum

Created on: October 11, 2008   Last Updated: October 20, 2008

We've all heard the expression 'idle hands is the devil's workshop'. While it was usually said when an adult wanted a child to do a chore the child hated; little did we realize that it was also keeping our brain from being idle as well.

Studies have shown that people who sit around and do nothing are prone to the mind deteriorating diseases. But keeping our brains sharp does not require huge amounts of work. Simple things like reading a book. Any book will do, it does not have to be something so difficult that you could blow a gasket trying to understand, a lightweight novel will suffice.

Puzzle books is another one of those things to keep the mind busy. Again it doesn't have to be the latest logic puzzle magazine unless that is your choice. There are many variety of puzzle books from world circle books to crosswords, cryptograms, and sudoko.

Don't like puzzles? Crafts and sewing keep the hands and the brain busy. Even a simple class once a week or so will help to keep the brain engaged. When starting a new craft idea take it one step at a time. Don't try to tackle the whole instruction set at once. one step at a time.

Mention writing and many people believe that they cannot write. But a simple form of writing that anyone can do is to keep a journal. There are a variety of journals from the one people keep to chart the progress of a personal objective to keeping a record of the days events. Keeping a journal is nothing more than finding a time of day, sitting down with pen and paper and noting the events of the day and your thoughts on those events. There is no need to worry about things like spelling, grammar, or even complete sentences. The purpose of the exercise is to simply do anything that will keep you mind going.

Even watching a program on the television that promotes thoughts and reaction can be good. Programs that are aired on PBS, Discovery, and Leraning channels are such good programs.

There are numerous doctors and so called experts that have a variety of ways from diet to sleeping habits on how to keep our brains sharp, but these so called programs don't take into account the individual. It doesn't matter what you do as long as you are doing something other than idlely sitting around to engage the brain and keep it working.

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