"Studying clears our brain fog and enriches our lives" - 4 women share the joy of learning new skills in mid-life

Have you been feeling the desire to learn something new? No matter where you're at in life, it's only natural to feel stale sometimes, or to crave time for yourself – so why not do something different?

These four women all took up a new hobby or learned a new skill as mid-life and older adults. From a complicated local language to a musical instrument, here they share how they've found these ventures incredibly rewarding and fulfilling.

'I learnt a local Berber language'

"From my first visit in 2000, I loved the Dades Valley in Morocco," begins Helen Colley, 65, from Manchester. "Its small farms are rich with wheat and red poppies, and there’s stunning mountain scenery. It’s a magical place.

"My husband Michael and I returned many times to the village of Ait Oudinar, and made friends there. The men speak French as well as Arabic; they learn it at school, and my French was good.

"But the women only spoke the local Berber language, Tachelhit. Few of them went to school, and certainly not the nomad women.

"In 2009, we decided to lease and renovate a house in the village, spending two or three months at a time there. Frustrated by my inability to chat, I started building vocabulary.

"I’d ask children the names of animals, noting down what they told me, and on a visit to Marrakech, I found a Tachelhit grammar book written in French. I also began daily conversation classes with Mohammed, a local hotel chef, and his sister Fatima helped me too."

"It’s a guttural-sounding language and I found the pronunciation hard.

"Yet learning Tachelhit made a huge difference. At last I could follow conversations and make real connections, asking polite things other women expect, such as, ‘Are you married? How many children do you have? How are your crops doing?’

"One day at a tea party there was some chat about how nine women in the village were expecting babies. In Tachelhit, I said, ‘Did they put something in the tap water?’ They all burst out laughing – it was lovely to have made my first joke.

"I have been invited to several Berber weddings, and I’m helping Mohammed and his brothers with the website for their new venture, the Eden Boutique Hotel in nearby Tamellalt.

"Speaking a new language has made me feel part of the community, and makes my visits to Morocco so much richer."

'I studied wine – and landed a job offer'

"By my mid-20s I had qualified as an English teacher, left home and had a place of my own. Entertaining was one of my greatest pleasures, and I took pride in serving a good wine to my friends with the meal," says Patricia Dearlove, 60, who lives with her daughter Millie, 26, in St Leonards, East Sussex.

"We weren’t glugging through bottles for the sake of it – the fun was in discussing each wine’s merits."

"Although I loved the idea of working in the wine industry, I needed the financial stability of my teaching job. I was a single mum in my 30s, and the school holidays gave me quality time with Millie, plus the chance to travel, visiting vineyards abroad.

"When Millie was three, we moved to Salisbury. Keen to meet like-minded people, I enrolled on a Wine & Spirit Education Trust level 2 course. I met a great group and we established a wine appreciation club, calling ourselves the Cathedral Corkers. We're all still friends today.

"I left full-time teaching in 2014 to establish my own dyslexia consultancy business in Hove. However, when lockdown hit in March 2020, I decided to keep busy by taking online courses with the Wine Scholar Guild, including French Wine Scholar and Italian Wine Scholar. I enjoyed them so much that I later enrolled for a Level 3 qualification from the WSET, with Kent Wine School."

"My enthusiasm must have shown, because one of the tutors suggested I apply for a part-time position like hers, as a wine educator and tour host at the Gusbourne vineyard in Appledore – a dream job combining my skills as a teacher and my passion for wine.

"Who could have guessed my hobby would lead to an exciting new career in English sparkling wine?

"Since then, I’ve begun the WSET’s Diploma. Last June, I passed the first of six modules. It’s challenging, yet I don’t feel pressured because I’m studying for my own interest.

"Learning about wine has helped to clear the ‘brain fog’ you can feel as a midlife woman. It gives me a sense of validation – I still have a great deal to contribute."

'I was 40 when I fell in love with the water'

"Growing up, I hated swimming. I had lessons at school but was scared of putting my face in the water," says Minreet Kaur, 43, who lives in Hillingdon, West London. "I was brought up not to show my skin, and I felt uncomfortable in a swimming costume.

"My mum has always loved the water, but despite her encouragement, my self-consciousness persisted into adulthood.

"In 2018, I hit 40 and wanted to mark the milestone by taking on a new challenge – my mum suggested swimming. I arranged to have lessons at my local pool and, after a few sessions, my confidence improved – and, realising no one was looking at me, I stopped worrying about wearing a swimming costume.

"A few months later, I signed up to a challenge for Alzheimer’s Society, swimming five miles in 30 days. It was brilliant motivation to go to the pool and I found it helped me to de-stress too."

"In 2019, I came across Denham Waterski Club online, and seeing that they ran sessions for first-time open-water swimmers, I signed up. I was full of nerves but the instructor was patient and the group was so supportive.

"The euphoria I felt when I came out was unlike any other feeling. I was hooked.

"I was working as a journalist, but the joy of swimming sparked a new dream. As a sideline to my job, I wanted to set up a swim school for Asian women.

"In 2019, I signed up for a swimming teacher qualification. It was an intense, week-long course. I’m now qualified to teach adults and children in a pool, and I'm considering an open-water qualification.

"Teaching other Asian women brings me so much fulfilment. It’s not just about swimming – it’s counselling, listening to their worries and boosting their confidence.

"So many women feel how I used to, but with encouragement and sharing my story, I can help them conquer their fear."

'I learnt the cello after 30 years'

"I played the flute and recorder as a child, and in a burst of musical enthusiasm at 16, I asked my parents for a cello. But learning was time-consuming and I was busy with teenage life, so after only a month, the cello was put back in its case," says Vicki Strange, 51, who lives with her partner and her three children, aged 20, 17 and 13, in Lewes, East Sussex.

"The cello followed me from house to house – unplayed – for the next 30 years.

"I had a demanding research job, but wanted a change after moving to Lewes from London in 2010.

"I retrained as a primary school teacher. I enjoyed working in school but with a full-time job and three children, I reached a point in my late 40s when I needed to do something just for me. Could I learn to play my cello at last?

"A friend put me in touch with Catherine Black, a cellist who has a wonderfully understanding way of teaching adult beginners. Hearing her play, I was transfixed by the cello’s romantic, resonant sound.

"She tuned in straight away to my need for ‘ring-fenced’ time that was just about me and my learning. She never makes me feel guilty if I haven’t had time to practise.

"The cello isn’t an easy instrument. When I’m playing, it absorbs all my attention. I can’t think about anything else, so it’s my form of mindfulness. Playing is hard work and physically tiring. My struggle has helped give me a fresh insight into how tough it can be for children who find it difficult to learn.

"Being a beginner at my age is humbling – in a good way.

"In years to come, I want to be satisfied that I’ve done lots of different things. Playing the cello is helping me achieve that goal."