Given all the ageism and sexism smacking older women in the face aging can be a dismal state for many women. Mary Pipher to the rescue! In her new book, Women Rowing North, Pipher makes the case for a happy old age. She declares, “Happiness depends on how we deal with what we are given.” Piper interviews older women from all walks of [...]
Pat Taub
I recently received an email from a WOW reader, who described herself as “miserable with aging.” She wrote, “I hate getting old. I hate the wrinkles, sleep problems and bouts of loneliness . . . I hate having aged out of the dating scene.” The reader’s complaints carry a universal ring in our ageist and sexist culture, which [...]
Pat Taub
This is a tricky question because the soul is intangible, mysterious and hard to grasp, yet we recognize when our soul is awakened. Our world lights up, transporting us to another dimension. My soul is stirred when I listen to Aretha Franklin sing, cuddle a newborn baby, watch a sun rise, purchase fresh flowers, or find myself crying [...]
Pat Taub
Guest Post by Stephanie Raffelock We arrive at the doorstep of older age without a plan. Often retirement isn’t what it’s cracked up to be. We often find our sense of self, tangled up with what “we used to do” instead of “who we are now.” THE PURPOSEFUL LIFE Life comes down to this at any age: we are [...]
Pat Taub
What if the US had an official agency called “Learning to be Old”? Here’s how I imagine it: older women and men are scheduled for aging interviews where their aging progress is assessed followed by recommendations for a meaningful old age. When I show up for my interview I’m escorted to the women’s section and led [...]
Pat Taub
With my birthdays piling up I ordered Ursula LeGuin’s* new collection of essays, No Time to Spare, seeking enlightenment for my own aging journey. The book’s title was inspired by a Radcliffe alumni survey sent to LeGuin, class of 1951. She was dumbfounded by the question that asked how she spent her spare time. Her response: “What is [...]
Pat Taub
After blogging about aging for over two years now I challenged myself to come up with guidelines for thoughtful aging. I’ve distilled into 14 principles what I’ve learned from life experience, reading, talking with close friends and interviews with wise women. Embrace Your Failures During the 1970’s when I was studying family therapy, [...]
Pat Taub
When I set out to photograph images of older women to post on this blog, I never dreamed I’d meet with so much resistance. Two thirds of the women I asked to photograph turned me down. Sometimes it was a flat “No” uttered in motion as the woman hurried along. Other times I’ve received comments like: “I’m too old. Me? At my age! [...]
Pat Taub
“I’m not done with my transformation.” Alexandra Merrill, on the cusp of 80, quoting Stanley Kunitz in his poem, The Layers, which he wrote upon turning 90. Zanda, as she is called, embodies aging meaningfully. I’m proposing substituting “aging meaningfully” with the commonly used phrase “aging successfully,” [...]
Pat Taub
Today marks my 100th posting since launching WOW in August 2015. WOW came about when, looking for resources for my course “Women and Aging,” I goggled “blogs for older women.” To my dismay the vast majority consisted of advice on how to dress younger, lure a man, up your sex drive, cosmetic surgery and the like. In other words, how [...]
Pat Taub