Aging

Why is it that our culture creates so many words and expressions that under the surface is masked ageism? In turn, we internalize those words and place limitations on ourselves.

Recently, I was introduced to Dr. Robert Waldinger. He runs the Harvard Study for Adult Development, a seminal eighty-year longitudinal study of humans that tells us a lot about what creates life satisfaction. His TED talk has been viewed more than 40 million times, and one of the key lessons is relevant to those of us in the Modern Elder community.

The night is endless this time of the year, right? It's time for curling up on the couch and letting Hollywood have her way with us. Unfortunately, there can often be a paradox of choice given all the ways we digest film content at home these days: Netflix, Hulu, ApplePlus, HBO Max.

I’ll never forget when I was interviewing the famous film and sports entrepreneur/investor Peter Guber on stage in LA and he told me of his excitement for meeting Senator Barack Obama for the first time, who was fifteen years younger than him. It made me realize that being a “fanboy” or “fangirl” keeps us humble and curious, no matter what our age.

It was a normal enough moment. I was sitting at a Starbucks, coffee in hand, putting off some work for a few indulgent minutes of Facebook. I was robotically scrolling, partially engaged with the usual mix of animals, self-help quotes and messages from friends.

A preface: Maybe an act of self protection. I suspect most people who will read this are the exception to the rule, and we are the ones who can move the needle.

Did you know that demographers predict half of today’s kindergarteners (in the developed world) will live to be 100?

This title was the headline of a New York Times story this summer—an evocative headline that has me personally wondering if my body is failing me or am I failing my body? Am I the victim or the perpetrator?

Many Modern Elders, because of our age, have parents, siblings, and friends whose health is failing. We find out through a diagnosis, or we witness it simply as the effects of aging.

I was listening to talk radio in New Mexico last month. Yes, there are long expanses of highway here, so it’s becoming an unusual pastime of mine. On this day, a middle-aged man was sobbing about how his mother had "lost her marbles" based upon early-stage dementia.