Category: Aging

  • We Each Need to Have a Desert

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    bholmesjr
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    As we cycle through life with its transitions, the chaos that surrounds us in today’s world can become overwhelming. In order to mitigate the intense emotional reaction to the hurricane of fast-moving continuous news cycles, political divisiveness, and personal life challenges (money, job, family, lack of time, health), we need to find a resting place.…

  • Transition to a New Year

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    bholmesjr
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    As we approach the holiday season, we each view the holidays from our perspective of past experiences. For many, the holidays are a joyous and eagerly anticipated time. For others who have experienced loss or trauma, the holidays can be an endurance obstacle course.  We generally meet after the holidays with the attitude that the…

  • Living Alone During the Holiday Season

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    bholmesjr
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    As the decades have passed and life transitions have occurred, the late 70’s have proven to be a time of reflection and, in many ways, the attainment of clarity about the effects brought about  by life’s adventures. Living alone for most of us is a series of peaks and valleys. The Christmas season is a…

  • Memories that Create Auras

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    bholmesjr
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    As I age, some memories throughout my life create a feeling within me that elevates my spirit. These memories not only permit me to recall the events that created the memory, but also the context of the events. Where was I? What was I experiencing for which the events registered in a different way than…

  • Scribbling about the Thread of our Lives

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    bholmesjr
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    The trees outside my window are an amazing spectacle of color, ranging from dark green to burnt orange, gold, red and amber. Another season is upon us as we approach the excitement of the holidays. As we age, we look forward to another chapter in the parade of seasons. What will it bring? In my…

  • Retirement…Thinking about my strategy

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    bholmesjr
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    When I retired, I rrealized that my life had changed dramatically from the work-a-day world that I had experienced for the years since I left the cockpit and joined the world of high reliability electronics for the aerospace industry. Retirement was a life transition with which I had no experience. I was fortunate because I…

  • Navigating Risk in Life Transitions

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    bholmesjr
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    Risk is inherent in almost every life transition. Our fears and self-doubt contribute to the chaos that is roiling within us as we enter a new branch of our life pathway. I experienced the specters of doubt as I entered college. Was I smart enough? Disciplined enough? Persistent enough? When I entered pilot training, was…

  • When Does Old Age Begin?

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    bholmesjr
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    Joel Pinsker addresses the words used to describe “old age” in the Atlantic Magazine in his article “When Does Someone Become Old?”. The article reviews the many words that define those who are “aging”, such as elder, elderly, senior, retired, old, older, geriatric, and mature. In considering the topic of aging, I have always tended…

  • A Neighbor’s Tree

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    by

    bholmesjr
    in

    My neighbor allowed an acorn to sprout in her front yard. At first, it barely broke through the soil. She placed a wire plant cage around it so that her lawn team would not mow over it. I don’t remember exactly when, in the spring of this year, the little tree sprouted, but as it…