If you live alone, if your family is scattered far and wide, if you recently lost a partner or spouse, if you can’t afford the plane...
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“I Hate Getting Old”
I recently received an email from a WOW reader, who confessed to being angry about aging: “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 presents a formidable [...]
Pat Taub
The Secrets of the Dog Park
GUEST POST by BARBARA BENGELS I’m a dog run junkie. There’s hardly a day that goes by when my husband and I are not at a local dog run with my daughter’s 2 ½ year old pup who lives with us. I’d like to say that this is all to benefit our Penelope—but I’d be lying. Yes, Penny looks forward to these excursions every day—to [...]
Pat Taub
Celebrating Feisty Old Broads
Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at close of day. These immortal words of Dylan Thomas are a suitable motto for Feisty Old Broads, older women who reject the stereotype of the accommodating old lady. The FOB’s are women who are fearless in their individuality. They speak truth to power, laugh a lot, have [...]
Pat Taub
Father’s Day, A Great New Podcast, A Netflix Thriller & More!
Father’s Day This Sunday I will mark Father’s Day, remembering both my father who died in May 1994 and my oldest son, father to two spirited teens, Jane and Max. The role of fathers has changed dramatically over three generations. My father was the traditional ‘50s Dad, rarely at home, working long hours as an attorney and never [...]
Pat Taub
Practicing Forgiveness Is a Game Changer
Forgiveness is especially meaningful late in life. This is the time to wipe the slate clean, to do away with emotional baggage that prevents us from living in the moment. To quote Ram Dass: “The role of elders is to move away from ego into soul.” What could be better for the soul than to practice forgiveness? You might ask: “How [...]
Pat Taub
Working Artist: Cecile Pineda
GUEST POST by LISA SAVAGE In this pandemic we’ve witnessed a devolution of autonomy for working mothers scrambling to accommodate the loss of daycare while holding down their jobs. As moms still on average earn less than dads — even for the same work — it’s the moms who often reduced their hours to fill the childcare gap in [...]
Pat Taub
Healing A Mother Wound
Mother’s Day is right around the corner, and while it’s a joyful time to honor mothers, it can also be an unsettling occasion for those adult daughters with a pronounced mother wound. The holiday can reawaken a daughter’s memories of the maternal hurt she experienced growing up and which continues to affect her primary relationships. [...]
Pat Taub
Being 76
GUEST POST by EILEEN GRIFFIN I did not welcome my seventieth decade. With the arrival of my 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and even the 60s, I crossed each threshold with relief or anticipation or calm acceptance, but always ready. Not so with the 70s. On my 70th birthday, I wanted to open the door and holler “Go away, scat, you have the wrong house.” [...]
Pat Taub
Obituary: The Final Writing Assignment
GUEST POST by JANET WEIL I’ve typed up many others’ documents in my time, but the single page printed in a strange reddish ink was a first for me: my father-in-law’s self-written obituary. This record of his life was too important to him to leave to others to put together. Robert “Bob” Weil was a gentleman of the old school, and [...]
Pat Taub
New Beginnings: Life Post-Lockdown
Spring’s arrival, with its warming temperatures, is perfectly timed with the gradual re-opening of our country. Many of us have now received both vaccination shots, allowing us to step into the outside world to make travel plans, tentatively dine indoors and exchange hugs with reunited loved ones. While initially the lockdown was a big jolt [...]
Pat Taub