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...
Positive Self-Image10
Debunking “Successful Aging”
I rankle whenever I hear the term, “successful aging,” which has become the Boomers’ mantra. I take issue because it implies there is a right and wrong way to age. Successful aging is defined in terms of a self-centered wellness regime as opposed to a compassionate focus on the elder’s wisdom years, where giving back to society [...]
Pat Taub
Home Alone For the Holidays
The holiday season is upon us. Thanksgiving is next week, soon to be followed by Christmas and Hanukkah where images of happy extended families are portrayed in TV commercials and Hallmark specials. But if you’re among all those older women and men who live alone, who don’t have a family to celebrate with, or who recently lost a partner, [...]
Pat Taub
Childless by Choice
In my Zoom class on Women’s Spirituality, we watched the film, “A Goddess Remembered,” which put us in touch with the legacy of our female ancestors. In one segment, Jungian psychiatrist, Jean Shinoa Bolen, commented, ‘When I had a child, I felt connected to all the women who came before me.’ The implication was that until she [...]
Pat Taub
Play, Laugh, Be Silly and Reduce Your Stress
I consider myself lucky because I got the play gene. While my family provided me with enough drama to propel me into therapy for decades, they also gave me a delight in play, in whimsy and in just being silly. We loved playing practical jokes. A box of rubber chocolates lay in wait for unsuspecting guests: a whoopie cushion could be placed [...]
Pat Taub
Becoming Resilient
In her new memoir, “A Life in Light,” popular author Mary Pipher offers life lessons on becoming resilient by moving into the light. For Pipher, light isn’t just a metaphor but a literal expression of how light restores her. Ever since she was a small child Pipher was drawn to the light. Her first memory is as an infant, lying on a blanket [...]
Pat Taub
My Secret
GUEST POST by MARGIE CAMPBELL I’m going to tell you a secret. It isn’t something that I tell readily these days. It is something that has been a burden lately. Perhaps if I share it with you, I’ll become more comfortable with it. So, what is it that causes you so much concern, you may well ask? Okay, here it is—some months ago I turned [...]
Pat Taub
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 [...]
Pat Taub
Soulful Spring Cleaning
Spring is typically the time when we tidy up our living spaces by washing windows, sorting kitchen cupboards, and getting rid of clothes we no longer wear. What if we applied this same thinking to our interior lives? What if we engaged in spring-cleaning for the soul? What would that look like? It might involve reworking the formula in [...]
Pat Taub
The Mother-in-Law Curse
When my oldest son became engaged, a luncheon was arranged to introduce me to his finance’s family. When I glanced around the table, I caught my future daughter-in-law’s sisters scrutinizing me. I experienced the uncomfortable sensation that I was being sized-up to determine the extent to which I’d be a problematic mother-in-law. I [...]
Pat Taub
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.” [...]
Pat Taub