Moon Pause, Part 9: Choose To Be The Masterpiece Of Your Life

Conclusions

Over the past eight weeks, I’ve delved into a variety of issues that women (and men) face in the second half of life. I feel as though I stood next to an iceberg of information and only scratched the surface enough to make a margarita. The topic of aging women is diverse, challenging, and exciting.

Will my definition of the “golden years” be the same as it was for my mom or my grandmother? No. Lifespans are lengthening, and more are living beyond their savings. There are more services available in some areas, and fewer in other areas. Women of “a certain age” loathe to accept invisibility. They are active, they are healthy, and they demand more from themselves and others. As the Baby Boomers continue their march into history, I suspect Boomer women will set new records for achievement and longevity. I keep a sign near my computer that reads, “We are our thoughts. Choose to be the masterpiece of your life.” That is my choice, and age will only enhance the patina.

I’ll end this lengthy series with a few items for thought:

Former “Strictly Seniors” host Roland Minda shares some interesting facts on how seniors spend their time, according to The Wall Street journal’s recently released the survey. He also mentioned that Minnesotans are ahead of the following national statistics:

• Gardening is the most popular outdoor activity for seniors.
• TV viewing is the most popular indoor activity for seniors.
• 50% of seniors spend about 6 hours a week volunteering.
• 15% of seniors polled take adult education classes.
• 34% of seniors go to the movies at least once a year.
• 20% of seniors go to a sporting event at least once a year.
• 20% of seniors comprise art museum attendance.

For more information on Roland, Click Here.

And lastly a few chuckles from one of my favorite writers, Dave Barry.

Nineteen Things That It Took Me 50 Years To Learn

By Dave Barry

1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.
2. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be “meetings.”
3. There is a very fine line between “hobby” and “mental illness.”
4. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.
5. And when God, who created the entire universe with all of its glories, decides to deliver a message to humanity, He WILL NOT use, as His messenger, a person on cable TV with a bad hairstyle.
6. You should not confuse your career with your life.
7. No matter what happens, somebody will find a way to take it too seriously.
8. When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command. Very often, that individual is crazy.
9. Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance.
10. Never lick a steak knife.
11. Take out the fortune before you eat the cookie.
12. The most destructive force in the universe is gossip.
13. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight savings time.
14. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests that you think she’s pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.
15. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age eleven.
16. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average drivers.
17. The main accomplishment of almost all organized protests is to annoy people who are not in them.
18. A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person. (This is very important. Pay attention. It never fails.)
19. Your friends love you anyway.