WOW: Women's Older Wisdom
WOW

March 2024
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Aging Fearlessly

Writing A Eulogy And Finding A Poem

GUEST POST by JANE SESKIN I was about to cross the street when I looked to the right and saw my friend riding toward me. I knew it was Ann from her distinctive red bicycle helmet. She pulled over to the curb. We caught up on personal news and the state of the world.  I left the encounter smiling. She was an energetic woman in her late 60’s [...]

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Owning Your Voice

My class of “Women and Aging,” got into a lively discussion for maximizing our later years.  After the class one member dashed off a group email apologizing for “interrupting and talking too much.”  Her email was promptly followed by another class member who echoed the same regret along with her apology.  A little later a third [...]

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Letting Go of Regrets

All things considered I’m managing my old age fairly well.   I can check off most of the boxes for health, family, etc., but when it comes to handling my regrets, I’m often stalled. To this day I’m haunted over screaming matches with my teenage sons, impatience with my mother when she was dying, love affairs I allowed to go on way [...]

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Women Who Restore My Faith in Humanity

Last Friday I attended a memorial service for 96-year-old Joanne Booth, who never failed to brighten my day when we met up. Joanne’s infectious, slightly mischievous smile, was contagious, as was her love of life.  As I listened to her four daughters deliver their warm, loving accounts of their mother’s full life, my mind wandered to [...]

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The Strong Woman Trap

A neighbor, an elderly woman, who’s been through the mill caring for a husband with Alzheimer’s is referred to as a “strong woman.”  I know several Maine women, well into their ‘70’s and ‘80’s, who have carved out self-sufficient rural lifestyles, including chopping their own firewood. They too are called “strong women.”  [...]

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Combatting Loneliness

“I hate coming home to an empty house.  The silence can be deafening.”  “I can go days without speaking to anyone except the clerk in the grocery store or my mail carrier.”  “I rarely reach out to my friends when I’m feeling lonely because I’m too embarrassed to admit I’m lonely.”  “My adult daughter tells me to [...]

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What We Like About Getting Older

Research has found that older women are discovering that age has unanticipated rewards.  Setting aside the usual physical symptoms like arthritis, decreased flexibility and stamina, the older woman sparkles in new ways.  She frequently finds herself more content and more confident, while still full of dreams. Eager to capture individual [...]

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