Embrace Your Aging

Happy New Year! Another New year! It seems that the older we get, the faster the years go by. I remember thinking during graduate school in the 1970’s that the George Orwell dystopia book “1984” was both dooming- and far off. It was actually only a decade away. Time is short! Now I hear about the future impact of climate change, new self-driving autos or predicted demographics for 2025 and it feels like they are talking about tomorrow. When I look back on the years that I hav

I just read an op-ed on how boomers are being ignored; how TV, commercials, movies and music are all geared toward the younger generations. We older folk are left out. The article exhorted our country, if that is possible, to remember our numbers, our power, and our pocketbooks before dismissing us. I tend to agree. The message behind the article was an implicit recognition of one of the challenges of being an aging boomer. After a lifetime of being special, of both being

My husband is turning 80 next week. Eighty is a big number. He keeps saying that he feels like 40. At forty he had already given up his special feat of jumping up on kitchen counters from a stand-still position. At forty he had already been diagnosed with a heart condition, an ailment making any 40 year old feel old beyond their years, but one that didn’t slow him down. Today, at 80, he doesn’t feel like he thought he would at 80. He feels like 40. So what does it mean to b

I just moved. ...Again. Risk averse, I am not. Afraid of change, not me. After years of embracing change, sometimes thinking that I thrive on chaos, I have learned that change has its advantages- and some disadvantages. Looking at the world through a different lens can be, literally, eye opening. It’s like sitting on one side of the room and never noticing that the pictures behind me are crooked- until I move my chair and sit on the other side of the room. A clearer view Movi

Now that I’m a bit older, (a phrase I have come to accept), I keep running across the question, “Given the opportunity to look back, what are your regrets?” The question, however, assumes that I do regret something; the reality is that I don’t really regret- much. Is regret an option? When I hear other people answer this question, I often hear an immediate response of “nothing”. It is often followed by a comment about their lousy marriage, but without which they would not h

Six years ago, my brother was killed. He was murdered. Six months ago my friend’s husband died in his sleep. Twelve years ago, my mother died. She had Alzheimer’s Disease. Grief Grief over the loss of a loved one, can be quite painful. Life does go on, and, slowly, the sharp pain subsides. Yet, so many events rekindle the sadness, the loss. The anniversary of a death, a birthday or a holiday reminds us of the good times, the shared memories, and, for the moment, the grief ret

For anyone moving on to the next phase of life after an active, demanding professional career, life can be a very mixed blessing. Sure, sleeping in on a Monday seems quite compelling, as does going grocery shopping during the week, picking grandkids up from school and having time to read a good book. However, professionals who are closely aligned with their role and the respect that role offers, soon realize that all the pleasurable tasks of retirement are no match for the lo