Pat Taub
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 a few other women who have restored my faith in humanity.
Joanne Booth, 1925-2022
All these women share a mind-set that is positive when faced with adversity. They refuse to capitulate to despair. They are not Pollyanna’s. They are simply too engaged with life to let themselves be pulled down. They are beacons of hope.
I met Joanne at my Portland church, happily discovering that we shared a connection with the pacifist-oriented College Cevenol in Chambon, France, where we both were summer volunteers. Joanne was at Cevenol right after the war, while I participated during a college summer in the 1960’s. Joanne marched for civil rights and world peace. She loved New Orleans jazz and dancing to its beat. She was an inveterate writer of poems, several of which her daughters read at her service.
Grace, at almost 88, has been a fearless champion for peace and justice issues for six decades. She lived in an intercity neighbor where she championed tenants’ rights. In Maine she has been a steady figure in protests for world peace, immigrant rights, and every other justice issue of the day. No matter how glum the world is, Grace refuses to abandon her causes. She puts activists half her age to shame.
I know several older writers and artists, who, while not well-known, find meaning in spinning out new stories, paintings, music, and essays. Their work is passionate, jumping with life. They inspire me to be more disciplined with my writing schedule.
I am restored by Carol, a 65-year-old poet, who writes daily, undeterred by her countless rejection slips. Ronny, an older painter, paints for the pleasure of creating strong abstract images. She rarely sells her work, but delights in giving it away to close friends. I belong to this lucky group.
Then there are those older activists, like Janet, who refuse to sink into despair over the rapidity with which climate change is threatening life on earth. Janet works hard for Extinction Rebellion, the nonviolent group pressuring global leaders to address climate change.
Janet joining the global climate strike
Many of us, worried over the prospect of the Ukraine war turning into a nuclear disaster, feel too overwhelmed to do much except to binge on Amazon Prime or chocolate chip cookies. Not so for 80-year-old Catherine, whose heart is filled with social compassion. She consistently joins in peace marches and writes letters to the editor in support of peace negotiations. Catherine told me, “As long as I am able, I will raise my voice for world peace.”
Perhaps the group of women who most restore me are those brave, spiritual souls with a terminal illness. They know they have only a short time left, but they are determined to live as fully as they can despite their limitations. They attend social events and protest marches with an oxygen tube, walk with a cane, or are pushed in a wheelchair.
Like Joanne, they embrace life, not allowing themselves to be depressed by what they can’t do but focusing on what they can do. These women have a gratitude practice, where they live in the present, giving thanks for what many take for granted, like the birds’ morning songs.
I am restored by these remarkable women, whose courageous, soulful paths boost my spirits, helping me to feel hopeful even when the world is scary. They are my earthly angels.
