Entries in this category probe deeper thoughts about old age. Spirituality, self-image, relationships, hopes and yearnings — all the stuff of self-talk and core meaning for people who are older.
As a student of neuroscience, I understand that anger is one part of an automatic reaction to stress or danger. Continual anger doesn’t work all that well, though. In the long run, constant or habituated anger just isn’t all that practical. Eventually or ultimately: Anger doesn’t last. Unless continually stoked by circumstances or other people, anger dissipates when the real or imagined dangerMORE...
It has always seemed natural to me—maybe even ordinary—that God’s grace and love is always present, in whatever circumstance. But I don’t ever want to take that for granted. Not all spiritual traditions feature the profundity of a loving god. In ancient history, deities were considered angry—fierce storms, calamities and pestilences were punishments. A central tenet of these faith systems wasMORE...
Anger is both a necessary and harmful part of human psychology. As a feature of our emotional brains, anger is: Automatic: Part of the brain’s response to stress and danger—fighting/fleeing/freezing—anger comes into play quickly and efficiently to diminish the danger. A few brain structures short-circuit our normal decision-making process. Necessary and useful: Our brains require protection forMORE...
Over the next few weeks, my blog entries will consider anger—in our society and in our lives. This is an important matter important for older adults: We may be caught up in this growing phenomenon, and we may be able to counteract its effects. This matter has been on my mind and heart for decades, ever since I learned how perpetual anger gradually destroys minds and bodies. In the past severalMORE...
As I cruise the highways and byways of American senior adult life, I often come upon folks whose spirituality can be described as “outlier.” Re-affirmed by *Malcom Gladwell, the term may also illustrate an important feature of older-adult spirituality: Individuals who don’t always feel connected to the usual manifestations of Christianity. Not all of us consider ourselves outliers, ofMORE...
Are you certain that someone named *Bob Sitze actually sent this message to you? If this seems like an odd question, read on…. My digital identity has been compromised several times. Phony phone calls, probings of this blog site; a bogus claim—in my name—for unemployment insurance; an e-mail yesterday informing me that this device has been compromised and that I can keep embarrassing informationMORE...
Looking for things to gross me out—a questionable luxury of retired guy-ness—I recently came upon a story prepping readers for news about the annual contest sponsored by Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs. Because the idea of “competitive eating”—the term favored by *Major League Eating (MLE)—struck me as just bit more than odd, I kept reading. What I found seemed to be emblematic about any of us who haveMORE...
There’s a lot of “deserving” talk going around these days. Apparently many of us feel that we are owed something for all the troubles we’ve encountered over the past months. That past injustices make us primary candidates for recompense. Or perhaps we even think that our exemplary lives make us worthy for other rewards. “Not so,” says Martin Luther. In his Small Catechism, he frames the meaningMORE...
Lately I’ve been swatting away a foreboding that whirs around me like a mosquito looking for more than a good meal. To be direct, the ongoing drought out West has gotten to my spirit. Various swatting-maneuvers—corporate worship, devotional reading, conversations, prayer—have helped for awhile, but then the pesky facts keep buzzing back: Californians will run out of water by August, part of theMORE...
I used to think that Good News was always a YES–that abundance-thinking was the way to approach life, and that positivity was to be preferred over negativity. Not so much these days, though. Now I’m tinkering with the idea that the Gospel can also be framed by NO’s, that maybe it should include some negative ideas and some scarcity thinking as well. First, remember that gospel (euangelion)MORE...
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.