Aging, let it be acknowledged, seldom arrives in our lives all at once. Instead, it appears in large and small changes in our environment. I was recently on a crowded metropolitan bus and a very polite teenager stood up and offered her seat. At first I looked around to see where her gestures were directed and was flabbergasted to realize…she…
Even for us it has been an extremely busy summer: My wife Linda’s work. My work. One to four granddaughters living with us over the course of six weeks. The new book in publisher review. Travel. Staying current with what’s being written in my field. Sogetsu Ikebana. TV appearances. Attending to my own becoming which, as a human development…
The data is in, and it isn’t pretty. The vast majority of people over 50 don’t have sufficient retirement savings. On top of that, they don’t have enough time left to save their way out of trouble. Building enduring income streams is clearly a smart answer, as finance reporter Abby Hayes wrote in a recent piece called “4 Ways to…
SFO Airport/San Francisco. 3:00 am PDT. Three of my granddaughters (ages 7, 11, 14) and I are flying to the East Coast. Their 17-year-old sister is already at our house. Accustomed to flying together, the girls and I are a moving combination of jocular and somnambulant. We have a 5:00 a.m. departure with a connection to make in Denver. Ever…
When we’re really paying attention we don’t always see what we expect. Or sometimes we get blinding glimpses of the obvious, even about ourselves. I’ve noticed recently that I can be really stubborn. And I wonder whether under pressure I could be labeled a curmudgeon (a sexist and ageist term if there ever was one, the full equivalent of the…
Youth is life in the fast lane. Our metabolism is high, our reflexes are quick, our intensity is great, and we live at a fast pace. As we explore what life has to offer, we take risks in the belief that life is eternal. We believe that any misfortunes or setbacks will be followed by rapid recovery, and very soon…