The object of this course is to get your family/personal stories on paper. Studies have shown that most family stories fade beyond two generations. Our lives are filled with funny, poignant, sad, spiritual, and meaningful stories. You have stories only you can write. Most of us have wished we could ask about our families, but there's no one left to ask. Leave that written legacy for others and save them that frustration. They will thank you for it. There is no instruction, but we will discuss stories and the process of writing—don’t worry, it's painless. Each member should expect to write one story each week and read it to the class. Listening to the stories of others frequently sparks memories of our own, which we can add to our list of stories to write. At the end of the semester, we will produce a class book to which I encourage you to contribute your stories. Need more info? Email the instructor at gayleopie7@gmail.com or call 512-704-6558 and leave a message, including name, phone number, and question. Limit 12.

Gayle Opie, Facilitator
9:45 A.M.—12:15 P.M. Friday, Starts Sept. 18
The Church at Highland Park, Burchette Room
5206 Balcones Drive (78731)

Round up allyour orphan blocks, the ones where you made one extra and you didn’t need it, the blocks you made to test out a pattern and they weren’t the right size and the ones where the colors were not exactly what you wanted—those orphan blocks. We are going to stretch our imaginations to make a quilt out of those blocks. We will design a quilt by units using up those blocks unit by unit. Bring your blocks, your design skills and your sense of humor and we will see what wonderful creations we can make. Limit 16.

Susan Tennison
10:00—Noon Friday, Starts Sept. 18
Christ Lutheran Church
300 E. Monroe Street (78704)

Research has shown that there's nothing more effective for keeping aging brains alert and active than making music with other people. So why not learn to play acoustic guitar with like-minded folks? Students will learn basic guitar techniques, including tuning the guitar, chords to accompany songs, basic strum patterns, bass runs (individual notes played between chords) and playing scales. You’ll use these techniques to play and sing songs. Reading music is NOT TAUGHT in this course. A tablature notation will be introduced to show how the songs are played. An instruction book is available on this website: http://www.voith-usa.com/Guitar/index.html. The website also has audio to help you learn. The book has a pdf file for each chapter. You can print them yourself, or printed copies are available for $20. Each student must provide his/her own guitar. If you need help selecting a guitar, email instructor ahead of time at ray.voith@gmail.com or read these notes: http://www.voith-usa.com/Guitar/Other/buyGuitar.pdf. The instructor has 30+ years’ experience teaching guitar. Limit 15.

Ray Voith
10:00—Noon Friday, Starts Sept. 18
Northwest Recreation Center, Multi-purpose Room
2913 Northland Drive (78757)

Plants are the basis of our entire ecosystem—all life on Planet Earth. This course focuses on identification, discussion, and understanding of the vegetation that surrounds us. Topics will include native and cultivated flowers, trees and grasses, as well as ID resources, pollination, animal/plant relationships, life cycles and botanical curiosities. Whether we greet the plants outside on their turf or bring bits of them inside to study, the emphasis will be on getting up close and personal with our floral friends (except for poison ivy). Limit 20.

Valerie Bugh
10:00—Noon Friday, Starts Sept. 18
Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Rm. 205
3525 Bee Caves Road (78746)

If you participated in the spring LLI BEGINNER 1A course or have some prior acquaintance with the very basics of the Spanish language—pronunciation, simple vocabulary, common greetings and some regular verbs in the present tense only—this course is for you. You will start conversing with colleagues at your table in Spanish on day one using the verbs ser and estar in simple sentence patterns. Expect to do homework each week, practicing at home with a free online program that is our “textbook”, as well as handouts from the instructor. We will also use some short videos in class this term. Bring a notebook for organizing handouts and a good Spanish/English dictionary. Please bring $4 to the first meeting for materials for the whole course. Limit 25. 

Julie Sanford
10:00—Noon Friday, Starts Sept. 18
Triumphant Love Lutheran Church, Upper Room
9508 Great Hills Trail (78759)