WOW: Women's Older Wisdom

Practical Gratitude 101 

GUEST POST by MICHAEL STEINMAN That you are reading this surely means you don’t need it.  But I ask your indulgence. When interacting with children we often try to teach civility, by prompting, “What’s the magic word?”  [...]

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Death and Dying3

Listening to Elders

The passing down of elder wisdom is an honored tradition among cultures like the Natives Americans and the Japanese where elders are sought out for their sage advice. Unfortunately, this intergenerational exchange rarely happens in America’s youth-obsessed culture, which devalues elders and their lived experiences. But as more Americans [...]

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How to Support One Who’s Grieving

“Grief is the price you pay for love.”  Amy Bloom For a long time, as hard as I tried, I was awkward and uncomfortable in my attempts to  comfort the newly grief-stricken.  When a close friend or relative was hit with a death, I fulfilled my moral obligation to make contact, but no matter how often I reached out to someone who was grieving, [...]

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This Isn’t Exactly What We Had Planned*

* Carly Simon, “Legend in Your Own Time” GUEST POST by ANNE PENWAY This was not supposed to happen. Not when it did. I expected my midlife would include caregiving for my parents. And it did. I was the first responder to gradually escalating parental health crises for sixteen years. I expected to outlive my husband. Most women do.  The [...]

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