Someone asked me the other day why I wanted to start writing a weekly blog now that I am retired. They thought I would rather be enjoying retirement and not work at all anymore. Wrong! This question prompted me to write this blog post to tell you why I do this, how I do this, and about me....but mostly about YOU!
First off - Me, I have already lived through my 50s. I am in the next phase of my life and I have learned a lot in my 60 plus years. I am not your typical 60 something woman. In fact, I have been called everything from a "Flower Child" to a "Wonder Woman". I choose to call myself a 60+ woman who wants to help other women navigate through those tough years from 50 and beyond.
When I turned 50, there were few to none websites to connect with women my age. When you hit 50, somethings seem to change overnight and others change gradually, but things do change. I wish I had someone to help me with some of those changes.
Secondly - YOU! Your children are leaving home or have already left and you have an empty nest. You are approaching retirement and you don't know what to do with yourself.
You see lines on your face that weren't there yesterday and more will be there tomorrow (if you don't do something). You have questions, but don't where to go.
As a woman approaching 50 or 60 or beyond, you don't know what to expect. The media says one thing, actual life says another. Growing older doesn't have to be a mystery, we can do this together.
Thirdly - my Blog! There are a few sites now for the 50 and over woman (and man) but when I turned 50 there were only a couple and they were not very personal. They were not all that helpful when it came down to real life.
I told myself that when I retired and could devote time to it, I would create a site that would deal with real life issues and the woman (and man) who is growing older but not up!
That's my mantra...GROW OLDER BUT NOT UP! Who says we have to act a certain age when we are that age? Who determines what that age looks like? We do.
I remember when I was growing up, my grandparents were always old. My maternal grandmother died of a heart attack in her late 50s and so did my dad's father. Yes, they had health issues, but some of it was preventable, in my opinion...not all, but some. Attitude, being one of them.
On the flip side, I had a great grandmother who lived a full active life until she finally had to slow down at the age of 99 1/2. Yes, she lived alone and walked everywhere until about six months before she passed. She was the perfect example of how to live life.
Never did I hear her say, I can't do that because I am XX years old. Or did I ever see her stop doing things, she was always a stylish dresser and used to put pretty pastel colors on the tips of her beautiful white hair to match the outfit she was wearing.
When she couldn't drive (she could, but others thought she couldn't, simply because of her age) she walked everywhere, to the store, to church, to her daughter's house. She cleaned her own house almost to the very end. I never saw her lying around in her pajamas or robe after around 9 am. And she had a great attitude about everything, even when she outlived some of her children. My great grandmother had spunk and lots of it.
This blog is to highlight the positives of growing older, deal with the issues of growing older, and connect with others who have ideas, suggestions, stories, etc., about their own experience growing older.
My hope is to one day have a network of women and men who can help answer each others questions. If I don't have experience in a particular issue or don't feel I know enough to help someone, I will find someone or something that does. I interview family counselors, doctors, fitness instructors, other older people, preachers, anyone that I think has the answers I need so I can give them to you.
I have been writing this blog almost three years (3rd anniversary is Oct 15, 2018). I have plans to add more features. The future is bright and I intend to follow my great grandmother's lead and live my life to the fullest for as long as I can.
“Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years.
"We grow old by deserting our ideals.
Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
Samuel Ullman, died at age 84
an American businessman, poet, humanitarian
My blog is here to encourage you, to educate you (and me), and inspire all of us (including myself) to try new things and be open to living.
“I don't believe one grows older.
I think that what happens early on
in life is
that at a certain age
one stands still and stagnates.”
T. S. Eliot, died at age 77
an essayist, publisher, playwright,
literary and social critic,
and one of the
twentieth century's major poets
Please! if you have an encouraging word or a comment that may help the rest of us, please make that comment below or on our FaceBook page. Let me know how you handle getting older or what you have learned as you have gotten older. Share your feelings about aging.
XOXO
First off - Me, I have already lived through my 50s. I am in the next phase of my life and I have learned a lot in my 60 plus years. I am not your typical 60 something woman. In fact, I have been called everything from a "Flower Child" to a "Wonder Woman". I choose to call myself a 60+ woman who wants to help other women navigate through those tough years from 50 and beyond.
When I turned 50, there were few to none websites to connect with women my age. When you hit 50, somethings seem to change overnight and others change gradually, but things do change. I wish I had someone to help me with some of those changes.
Secondly - YOU! Your children are leaving home or have already left and you have an empty nest. You are approaching retirement and you don't know what to do with yourself.
You see lines on your face that weren't there yesterday and more will be there tomorrow (if you don't do something). You have questions, but don't where to go.
As a woman approaching 50 or 60 or beyond, you don't know what to expect. The media says one thing, actual life says another. Growing older doesn't have to be a mystery, we can do this together.
Thirdly - my Blog! There are a few sites now for the 50 and over woman (and man) but when I turned 50 there were only a couple and they were not very personal. They were not all that helpful when it came down to real life.
I told myself that when I retired and could devote time to it, I would create a site that would deal with real life issues and the woman (and man) who is growing older but not up!
That's my mantra...GROW OLDER BUT NOT UP! Who says we have to act a certain age when we are that age? Who determines what that age looks like? We do.
I remember when I was growing up, my grandparents were always old. My maternal grandmother died of a heart attack in her late 50s and so did my dad's father. Yes, they had health issues, but some of it was preventable, in my opinion...not all, but some. Attitude, being one of them.
On the flip side, I had a great grandmother who lived a full active life until she finally had to slow down at the age of 99 1/2. Yes, she lived alone and walked everywhere until about six months before she passed. She was the perfect example of how to live life.
Never did I hear her say, I can't do that because I am XX years old. Or did I ever see her stop doing things, she was always a stylish dresser and used to put pretty pastel colors on the tips of her beautiful white hair to match the outfit she was wearing.
When she couldn't drive (she could, but others thought she couldn't, simply because of her age) she walked everywhere, to the store, to church, to her daughter's house. She cleaned her own house almost to the very end. I never saw her lying around in her pajamas or robe after around 9 am. And she had a great attitude about everything, even when she outlived some of her children. My great grandmother had spunk and lots of it.
This blog is to highlight the positives of growing older, deal with the issues of growing older, and connect with others who have ideas, suggestions, stories, etc., about their own experience growing older.
My hope is to one day have a network of women and men who can help answer each others questions. If I don't have experience in a particular issue or don't feel I know enough to help someone, I will find someone or something that does. I interview family counselors, doctors, fitness instructors, other older people, preachers, anyone that I think has the answers I need so I can give them to you.
I have been writing this blog almost three years (3rd anniversary is Oct 15, 2018). I have plans to add more features. The future is bright and I intend to follow my great grandmother's lead and live my life to the fullest for as long as I can.
“Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years.
"We grow old by deserting our ideals.
Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
Samuel Ullman, died at age 84
an American businessman, poet, humanitarian
My blog is here to encourage you, to educate you (and me), and inspire all of us (including myself) to try new things and be open to living.
“I don't believe one grows older.
I think that what happens early on
in life is
that at a certain age
one stands still and stagnates.”
T. S. Eliot, died at age 77
an essayist, publisher, playwright,
literary and social critic,
and one of the
twentieth century's major poets
Please! if you have an encouraging word or a comment that may help the rest of us, please make that comment below or on our FaceBook page. Let me know how you handle getting older or what you have learned as you have gotten older. Share your feelings about aging.
XOXO
RSS Feed