We spend so much of our lives talking about the milestones of youth, but we rarely give the same attention to the quiet, profound experience of growing older. I wrote this piece with seniors in mind, and as the words came together, it became deeply personal for me. I found myself becoming quite emotional while writing because I started reflecting on how it feels when the world begins to look past the person you once were.
Honoring My Mother's Perspective
I was thinking specifically of my mother. She once shared with me how it feels to be discounted, or to have your words and experiences treated as though they no longer hold value. That sense of invisibility is a challenge many in our generation face. While I do not personally feel invisible, I know that those moments of being overlooked are very real. I wanted to capture that experience, giving voice to the dignity that remains long after the world stops paying close attention.
A Reflection on My Younger Self
In the second verse, I had to be honest about my own younger self. When we are young, we often believe we have the world by the tail, with everything ahead of us. We do not always see the depth of character and the light that shines within an elderly person. I wrote about that because I wanted to acknowledge that it is a natural part of life. I don't judge anyone for that perspective, as I was just as blind to that wisdom when I was younger as anyone else. It is simply a part of our evolution to eventually realize what we were once unable to see.
Essence Beyond Memory
While this song celebrates the enduring spirit, these words also hold a special resonance for those navigating the complexities of dementia or Alzheimer's. It serves as a gentle reminder that even when the mind may struggle or memories begin to fade, a person's true essence remains deeply rooted within. That spirit still shines through in precious, fleeting moments of connection and love.
A Gentle Invitation
This song isn't a judgment or a negative critique. It is simply an observation about what it feels like to walk through these years and a gentle invitation to see the person behind the age. As a lyricist, I wanted to touch on this subject to give it time in the sun and perhaps foster a little more understanding.
I hope that when you listen, you feel the heart behind the lyrics and are reminded to cherish the wisdom and stories that surround us every day.
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I'll start off apologizing in typical Canadian fashion because, yah, this review about age is a bit self-serving; I turned 60 this year - and - I'm just getting started.
I personally live by that famous quote we've all heard: "It ain't over, 'til it's over." Actually, older-me believes it's never over; we keep growing and learning even after we transition, but that's for another day.
Are you familiar with some of the famous people who built their dreams after the age of 60? Here are just a few to inspire your aching bones.
Three Outstanding Souls Who Exemplify the Cliche "Age is Just a Number"
Grandma Moses: She was born Anna Mary Robertson on September 7, 1860. She began painting at the age of 78. She was known for her rural scenery paintings. In 2006 her painting, "Sugaring Off," sold for 1.6 million dollars. Yep, proof right there, "it ain't over even when it's over!" She also lived to see her paintings sell for substantial amounts for her time (the 1930s) before passing on.
Harry Bernstein: He enjoyed fame very late in life as a successful published author. On June 30th, 1910, he was born in Stockport, England, living 'til the ripe young age of 101 when he passed away in Brooklyn, New York, on June 3, 2011. Do you know when he wrote one of his first published successful books, The Invisible Wall: A Love Story That Broke Barriers?The loneliness of losing his wife of sixty-seven years was the catalyst of this book. He started writing it at 93 years old! The book was published in his 96th year in 2007. He wrote and published The Dream in 2008, The Golden Willow in 2009, and What Happened to Rose was published posthumously in 2012.
Fauja Singh: His absolute tenacity has garnered him the nickname the Sikh Superman. He's the oldest living Marathoner. He was born on April 1, 1911, in British India, and at the age of 109, continues to reside in the United Kingdom. The terrible personal family losses he suffered in the 1990s redirected him back to his first passion, running. In the over 90's bracket, at the age of 93, Singh completed a marathon in six hours and fifty-four minutes.
What I've Personally Done For This Older Body, Mind, and Soul:
Last year, for whatever reason, at the age of 59, I felt "time." What I mean by that is I felt a powerful urge to do the things I've wanted to do in life but hadn't gotten off my butt to complete. So from last year, and now into 2020, I jumped in with both feet and committed to self:
I self-published a 50-year collection of a book of my personal poetry work.
I published a series of personally written riddle books and created the website StumpedRiddles.com. I'm currently writing book six in the series.
Keto saved my health. I lost over 60 pounds from 2019 to 2020. I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis at the age of 56 - and I was sick. Almost immobile. Today at 60, I feel ten years younger than I did at 56. Proper food and mild exercise are a part of my life every single day. It has taken a great deal of discipline, but feeling healthy is more important to me than eating the wrong foods and being sick.
I work very hard on body, mind, and spirit. Spirit (soul work) is just as important to my day as eating and exercise.
I'm not trying to be self-righteous - like I've had a perfect life or something. I haven't. Life has been filled with almost endless challenges. The difference for me at this age is accepting what has happened and moving forward. Always, always moving forward. After all, our time is limited.
The last page of my poetry book features a closing message to my kids. This message includes a quote that I feel perfectly describes life when times get difficult:
"You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete"by Buckminister Fuller (1895-1983) American Architect, Systems Theorist, Author, Designer, Inventor and Futurist
15 Personal Life Lessons I've Learned During These 60 Years of Living:
1. Don't give up.
2. When we're tired, rest.
3. When we need support, seek it from the safe arms of friends and family.
4. Love with all our hearts. Tell those who matter that we love them.
5. Find the good in others.
6. Live a life of service to others, big or small, it doesn't matter. Even the smallest contributions to another can brighten a day - something as simple as a smile or a kind word.
7. Guard our souls. There's a saying, "don't become that which you rail against."
8. Watch our thoughts and choose our words wisely.
9. Forgive. Forget about grudges and vengeance; they're a complete waste of energy and ultimately damaging to our soul. Accept that people will make mistakes, just like we'll make mistakes.
10. Find a way to reach our kids. Stay connected. This can be the toughest task. Do it anyway.
11. Read and advance our learning. Never stop.
12. Tolerance, compassion, kindness, and empathy are essential to the human condition. Live by those principles most or all of the time.
13. Fight temptation. Fight it hard. Dark/negative energy (whatever you decide to call it) is hunting us down every second of every day. It doesn't let up. We mustn't let it have our thoughts or our actions. We need to train our minds daily to recognize when we're slipping and put ourselves back on track as quickly as possible. We need to be proactive and kick that useless darkness out of our life-field.
14. When we need to cry, cry. Get those issues out; put them on paper, talk to someone, music, lyrics, art - whatever helps us release the pain.
15. Accept responsibility for our lives and for where we are in our life. Be honest with ourselves.
I'll end this article with this moving song, inspired by the famous Paradoxical Commandments, "Anyway, by Martina McBride." If viewing this article via mobile, you can listen to the song on YouTube here.
"You can chase a dream that seems so out of reach, and you know it might not ever come your way, dream it anyway" - lyrics.
"This world's gone crazy, and it's hard to believe that tomorrow will be better than today, believe it anyway" - lyrics.
"You can pour your soul out singing a song you believe in, that tomorrow they'll forget you ever sang, sing it anyway" - lyrics.
All the best to you, do it anyway.
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As a blogger and an eBay seller, I spend a fair bit of time sitting at my computer in my chair. Maybe you do, too. My mind and my body know that this is wrong and I do try to work fitness into my life by getting to the gym at least a couple of times a week and walking daily. That last element becomes difficult but not impossible in the deep cold, snow and ice of our Canadian winters.
By chance, the next time I was out shopping I stumbled across it. Because my friend had mentioned it, I opted to take it home. I carried it to my book club, which for whatever reason is populated by women of my age. I guess we could be called middle-aged though I am not sure of the definition of that age group. Most of us have raised families and are empty nesters. A couple still have teenagers at home. Some still work and others are retired. Physically I would say they are an active group of ladies. Whatever our similarities, we are definitely all interested in the process of aging and we took up Olga's story as our next book club assignment.
What Makes Olga Run? is the story of Olga Kotelko, a retired Canadian school teacher who went looking for something active to do. She started with baseball but did not like it when she was almost run down on the baseball diamond. She then found track and field and went on to became a 90-something year old super star.
As the book says on page 2, "Just how good is Olga?" Well, she holds 26 world records. She enters more events than others her age and than others much younger. She often does as many as six throwing events, three sprints and three jumps at one track and field meet. She beats records in her age group by leaps and bounds, pun intended. In 2009, she threw a javelin 20 feet farther than her nearest rival and her 100-meter dash time would have beat competitors two age brackets younger than she was.
Writer Bruce Grierson took up with admitted difficulty the job of following Olga around as she went through her days and as she allowed science to look at and into her body. The question that the book looks into is whether Olga is a superstar because of genetics, because of lifestyle choices or because of a combination of those factors? A subject that intrigues most of us.
The book looks at all of the pieces that we know and think go into healthy living from sleep and diet patterns to personality, exercise and genetics. It is 228 pages of easy-to-read information about Olga and what makes her tick. It closes with a summary called Nine Rules For Living. I will not list them here because I believe you need the explanation that comes with them that is included in the pages of this book. I will admit that I have work to do in numerous areas and I do intend to try to embrace some of the ideas in this book in order to live a bit better. They are not all, by the way, about fitness.
This book comes HIGHLY RECOMMENDED by me, a 50-something year old empty nester though I believe that anyone who cares about their body and how and why we age will enjoy this book. I particularly appreciated the fact that the book was very readable. I think you will, too.
How about it? Are you curious about What Makes Olga Run?
Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”
