OCTOBER YEARS & November too
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A WRITER'S TAKE ON MAKING THE MOST OF LATE-LIFE. An offering of blogs, videos and articles dealing with life in our 60s, 70s and beyond.
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
4d ago
It’s all in our head
Hey, we’re not kids you know. We’re adults, some of us very mature adults. We’ve known about the facts of life for a long time…..long enough to know that those 'facts' come in more than one version.
How about this fact? Simply put, we live life in our head, in our mind. It was that way as experience-seeking adolescents, learning to cope with an exciting new world. And it is still that way today, after all the miles we’ve traveled.
By October and November we realize how much of our life's journey…..mental, emotional, and spiritual.…..has been played out in our mind. If th ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
2w ago
It is fair to ask what keeps me returning to these blog pages. After all, I’m the guy who sometimes tells himself that it’s time to head for the sidelines, that I’ve run out of October (and November) things to say. Yet at least so far, it seems like every time I get in that space something like the following bit of elder wisdom has me thinking second thoughts.
“For people like me the notion that ‘old age is a time to dial it down and play it safe’ is a cop-out. Those of us who are still able to do so should be raising a bit of hell on behalf of whatever we care about ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
1M ago
Here I am, remembering again……something I’ve been doing lately. And you know, it seems to me that some of my fondest memories are those of lessons learned. Today’s recollection is a prime example of that.
So, what am I remembering today…..and what lesson did it teach me? Well, if you are my age you too will remember The Lone Ranger and Silver, Roy Rogers and Trigger, and Gene Autry and Champion. But do you remember Gil and Star?
True story…..I was 33 years old. I had bought a ranch, 1,400 acres in the Oregon Outback. We had moved our family there, stocked it with cattle and their calv ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
1M ago
Hey, it’s okay, you know. I happen to be in a remembering mode, in a remembering time of life. With that comes the luxury of revisiting, and reliving, some of the special moments I have experienced……moments I remember. In particular, I have recently been remembering some of our family travels, and the recollections we brought home with us.
You know that feeling, don’t you? All of us, no matter what our age, like to remember. Of course, we realize that we ought not live in that space permanently, but it is a nice place to visit from time to time. For me, this is one of those times.
So ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
2M ago
BACK TO OUR OWN FUTURE
Perhaps like you, Roma and I saw the Mona Lisa hanging there in its place of honor in the Louvre Museum in Paris. Our modest world travels had included a pilgrimage to what some accept as the world’s most perfect painting. We had been there and done that. So what did we have to show for it?
Truth to tell, our personal rendezvous with Leonardo’s masterpiece was a rather hurried moment, played out in a shoulder to shoulder crowd….all of whom were straining to capture a glimpse of the prize.
As I recall, in my artistically-illiterate eyes Mona was a ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
2M ago
THE RESULTS…in living color
If you are like me, there are moments when you find yourself looking back on earlier times. Of course, we tell ourselves we cannot live in that past, yet at the same time it can be hard to ignore the stash of recollections we have stored in the dark corners of our mind……at least some of which we do not want to leave behind.
Since this site has always been titled a “writer’s blog’……and since I get to be that “writer”……..today’s post will shine a blatantly self-indulgent light on what I choose to reme ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
3M ago
Have you ever wondered what it is that makes the old folks, I mean the ‘really old’ folks, the way they are?
Though you may have created theories of your own, it seems to me the following outline is a ‘spot on’ depiction of their history…..and the special time they, my generation, have been blessed to experience.
I’m pretty sure that October/November/December folks will see themselves here. Hopefully our children and grandchildren will take a few minutes to digest the reality that made us old timers the way we are, and why we sometimes struggle to make sense of today’s world.
Toda ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
3M ago
Have you ever been in that space……when your reading tastes have transported you to a ‘remembering’ time.....when you are not looking for new ways to tickle your pysche……but instead have set out to revisit good times that still have a hold on you?
For me there were no better times than the family adventure Roma and I wrote about in the book we called A Year to Remember……that time spent in Winchester, England, where we had gone so I could write a novel.
A few days ago I took that paperback off the self to confirm a bit of forgotten information. By this morning I had reread, and relived, the ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
4M ago
I realize that most folks may not share my personal belief in life after life. But for those who have learned that truth the following letter, posted on Facebook by Emma McCarty, may sound both familiar and comforting. I for one, took it very personally.
Hi there. This is your late loved-one speaking. (You can fill in the name of the one speaking to you.) I don’t have long, so listen up, because I have a lot I want to tell you.
First off, I get it. I understand.……..Ever since I left this world you have missed me, and I know you’re bracing for the upcoming holidays without me. N ..read more
OCTOBER YEARS & November too
5M ago
A while back I suggested that everyone, especially October/November folks, ought to consider writing their own personal memoir. After all, you have lived a full life. Chances are you have time on your hands and stories to tell. Seems to me those are the necessary ingredients for the most personal late-life project I can imagine…..one that only you can create.
So, what kind of response did I receive about what I considered a viable idea? Most replies sounded like……“I couldn’t do that. Why would I want to? I’m not a writer. Besides, who wants to read about my life?”
Those are al ..read more