Its been an exhilarating journey these past few years but we are finally settled in a stone cottage in Southwest France.
After parting with my beloved students and fellow faculty at the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition in 2017, we encountered many obstacles; both Tom and I experienced a dark night of the soul including 2 serious health crises, our faithful dog “Bella” died suddenly, our horses followed shortly afterwards, we parted with our equestrian farm, and then the pandemic. We have recovered but it wasn’t an easy road.
Somehow, I was still able to make the best of a bad situation; I learned to speak French, completed a post-graduate certification in Adult Education at Algonquin College, studied Landscape Design and Agriculture at Guelph University, purchased and renovated a 250 year-old French country cottage, moved our entire household to France, and created my very own location for Learn, Eat, and Be Well – Southwest France.
What’s next? My first wish is to reconnect with the nutrition student and graduate community I regretfully had to leave behind. I miss you and your voices on the other end of the phone or screen. So, within this update, I am asking you “How are you?” and I want an honest answer – The good, the bad, and the ugly.
In the background, I will be working in my sunny courtyard applying what I have learned in adult education to the rewriting of my curriculum for student tutorials, Wellness Business Systems, and some new courses. All of which will be posted to my very own learning management system on my website www.biancachurch.com in the new year.
In the immediate future, I will be focusing on “Learn, Eat, and Be Well – Southwest France” for May 2024. Now that the pandemic is well behind us, I think it is safe to resume my continuing education vacation for nutrition students and graduates. I have a new location; my own stone cottage with its neighbouring sister cottage and both are on a spring-fed river in a sunny valley called Coly. I have also revised the curriculum for Learn, Eat, and Be Well to reflect the adult learner and have added field trips that offer an experience in French life. Leading up to the date, I will be writing some interesting stories about my cottage “La Petite Bijoux”, the Learn, Eat, and Be Well field trips, and the people in my French neighbourhood, so stay tuned. You will find here a link to my Learn, Eat, and Be Well – Southwest France itinerary. I hope one day you can join me.
