Archive

November 2017

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The dependables in my life

  Knowing that I am a certifiably dependent older adult, I have come to realize the good news that I am surrounded by people who are dependable. Some are easy to spot: Family and friends who are there when I need them, watching me carefully and ready to spring into action. They’re bound to me because of love and shared experiences. These are the folks I have no trouble asking for assistance;MORE...

Little (old) kindnesses

  When I was younger, I noticed how older relatives would apologize for the size or significance of their gifts. Given that prompting, I agreed: Their presents were usually small, barely appropriate to my childhood dreams. Nothing big nor exciting came from their generosity. In my hedonistic or materialistic mindset, a gift was good only when it was big, surprising, unique, fashionable andMORE...

How will they know?

The older you get, the less most folks know about you. Two reasons: There are fewer people around you who have known you for awhile. And you probably don’t go around bragging about your history—work, family, adventures, accomplishments, roles, extraordinary knowledge or skills. For those reasons, nothing special about you sticks out in most folks’ minds—and so you are stuck inside only oneMORE...

The day is coming

  From what I hear, probably the most difficult adjustment at this stage in life comes when our car keys or driver’s license are taken away. (I’m pretty sure that very few of us voluntarily relinquish this all-important element of our independent living!) The giving up of a car may arise from a near or actual crisis, and it likely precipitates others that seem far worse. I write this entryMORE...

Bread on the waters

  I still like the semi-quirky verbiage of the King James Version. I especially enjoy its translation of Ecclesiastes 11:1. “Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.” In most commentaries, “bread” is explained as “the stuff from which bread is made”–grain of one kind or the other. “The waters” could be anything from rivers to flooded fields. In allMORE...

Whom do you trust?

This blog is part of an ongoing series that answers an intriguing question: What might it mean for older adults to claim that they are still “fearfully and wonderfully made?”   Eventually someone else is going to want to know more about your body or brain. That person could be your spouse, a medical professional, a counselor or pastor, or even a dear friend. They love you and want to beMORE...

Thanks for nothing

  No, really, God…. I mean it. I want to thank you for absolutely nothing. That may sound odd—something is usually better than nothing. At the start and end of my life, “nothing” will characterize me. “Having nothing” is the way I arrived into this world—naked and crying about starting my new life outside the protection of my mother’s body. And as you know, dear Lord, it’s the way I’llMORE...

Scruffy? Safe? Prophet?

  This happens to me often: Another older guy—slightly disheveled but personable—engages me in an uninvited conversation about a subject close to his heart. It’s uncanny each time it happens—What did that person see in me that told him it was acceptable to chat me up without any introduction? I’m pretty sure I know the answer: That guy sees in me someone who’s safe. Someone who won’tMORE...

Scruffy hat, scruffy guy

  If you met me on the street, you might mistake me for someone whose mother didn’t teach him how to present himself in a tidy and respectable matter. At this stage in life, I accept that possibility, because I am perfectly content with old clothes, a battered baseball cap and uncombed eyebrows. (Some of you old guys out there may know what I mean, right?) On one hand, this phenomenon is notMORE...

Storytelling with older adults

  Storytelling—theirs, yours, God’s–can be a pleasurable activity you share with older adults. I come from several generations of story-telling elders, so I love to wade into the stories that others tell, and those I spool out. Storytelling is a nearly-spiritual art that almost anyone can practice and enjoy. Although some stories can get out of hand—length, repetition, degradation ofMORE...

Bob Sitze

BOB SITZE has filled the many years of his lifework in diverse settings around the United States. His calling has included careers as a teacher/principal, church musician, writer/author, denominational executive staff member and meat worker. Bob lives in Wheaton, IL.

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