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September 2017

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September 29, 2017

Another Greatest Generation?

By Bob Sitze
In Current Events, Lifework, Personal Power, Time
September 29, 2017
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29September

I’ve just finished viewing the PBS series, The VietNam War, and have come to this thought: Those of you who served the country during this time—whether or not in combat, whether or not willingly—may be America’s next “Greatest Generation.” Looking at the world and life through the eyes of the men and women in the documentary, I’m pretty sure that we may have underestimated your importance to ourMORE...

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September 28, 2017

Fearfully and wonderfully made 1.35

By Bob Sitze
In Mind/Body, Personal Power, Time
September 28, 2017
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28September

This blog is part of an ongoing series that answers this simple question: What might it mean for older adults to claim that they are still “fearfully and wonderfully made?” Today I want to invite you into a neurological universe called “neurogenesis,” which you will remember from Biology 101 in high school. (Actually, you WON’T remember this amazing capability of the [older] adult brain, becauseMORE...

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September 27, 2017

Elderly fecundity

By Bob Sitze
In Mind/Body, Personal Power, Words
September 27, 2017
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27September

The title of this entry may startle you a bit, especially if you speak Latin fluently. “Fecundity” is about being fruitful and multiplying—a Scriptural way of describing abundant fertility among plants, animals and people. Acts of continuing, growing creation. Hardly the kind of thing that applies to being old, right? Nevertheless, there may be something here that could be helpful and hopefulMORE...

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September 25, 2017

Old wounds?

By Bob Sitze
In Current Events, Lifestyle, Personal Power, Soul Searchings, Time
September 25, 2017
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25September

Vietnam vets—this one’s for you…. I’ve been watching the Ken Burn’s PBS documentary, The Vietnam War ( ) and it occurred to me that I should write these few words to you…. I want to acknowledge that you may have sacrificed some important parts of your life in order to serve the country in that war: Your education, your friendships, your youth, your spirit and probably your physical well-beingMORE...

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September 23, 2017

Quiet church?

By Bob Sitze
In Current Events, Mind/Body, Soul Searchings, Time
September 23, 2017
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23September

It’s pretty noisy out there—perhaps especially for those of us who are older.  Not just literal noise and not just because we can’t handle the ringing in our ears or high-decibel sounds. The world today is filled with clamorous commotion in every way, most of it moving too fast and perhaps unaware of those of us who move deliberately and quietly through life. Those of us who treasureMORE...

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September 22, 2017

Old and silly

By Bob Sitze
In Lifestyle, Personal Power, Pleasure/Pain, Words
September 22, 2017
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22September

Here’s a personal question: Has anyone ever told you that it’s good when you’re silly? If YES, you’re likely surrounded by people who understand the original meanings of this term in Old English, Norse and German: blessed, happy, prosperous, blissful, of good mood or kindhearted. In those earlier versions of personified hilarity (joyfulness), being silly was a mark of good character. A sillyMORE...

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September 21, 2017

How do you want to be remembered?

By Bob Sitze
In Death/Dying, For Caregivers, Personal Power, Time
September 21, 2017
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21September

A graveyard is a good place to gain perspective on life—in all its tenses and tensions. The past tugging at the shirt sleeves of the present; the future hiding behind gravestones; today’s dirt and dust hiding yesterday’s ashes.  In a cemetery, all of life can be rolled into one picture: A collection of markers that signal the lives of remarkable people. Cemeteries also call to mind the questionMORE...

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September 20, 2017

Indeed, without our prayer

By Bob Sitze
In Lifestyle, Soul Searchings
September 20, 2017
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20September

Like a compost pile, a garden or each dawn, many of the natural miracles in our daily lives are not caused by anything we do. As Martin Luther explains some of the petitions in the Lord’s Prayer, these things happen “indeed, without our prayer.” We are grateful observers and recipients of these blessings, but not their progenitors or creators. As you and I try to find fullness in our lives, thisMORE...

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September 19, 2017

Plan your own memorial service, Part Three

By Bob Sitze
In Death/Dying, For Caregivers, Personal Power, Relationships, Soul Searchings
September 19, 2017
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19September

What would happen if your memorial service was a truly unique experience for those who attended? Consider these observations: Most memorial services are buried in words—the verbal outpourings of grieving others who try to find just the right way to express an avalanche of emotions that show themselves in an avalanche of verbiage or platitudes. What would happen if your or my memorial service wasMORE...

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September 18, 2017

Plan your own memorial service, Part Two

By Bob Sitze
In Death/Dying, For Caregivers, Personal Power, Relationships, Soul Searchings
September 18, 2017
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18September

Elsewhere here I’ve encouraged you to consider the task of planning your own memorial service, and communicating the plans to those who will survive you, as well as those who might develop that service. In these paragraphs I want to offer you some hints on how to go about that task. Start now The longer you wait, the harder the work will be, especially if your physical or mental conditions areMORE...

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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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