The truth remains: Words enable or form thoughts. No words, no thoughts! This category contains Full of Years blogs that play with words. Those associated with old age, and those that add zest to living fully.
Hurricane Ian seems oddly christened. In its original Gaellic, Ian means “God is good.” As a suffix, ”ian” indicates that its root has the same qualities. (Thus we know that a guardian shares the characteristics of a guard, or a librarian can be identified by whatever a library might be.) Right now it may be hard to see Ian, the catastrophic hurricane, as something good. There doesn’t seem to beMORE...
I didn’t used to think I was vulnerable. I tried to fortify my capabilities so that I could defend myself—and those I love—from dangers that might come along. I was young then, and those were different times. I don’t think that way any more. In these later decades, I have come to see that, along with everyone else, I have always been exposed to perils. Lately it has occurred to me that myMORE...
For too many months, my anxiety about large-scale problems in the world has blinded me to a reality much closer: People dear to me are quietly carrying significant personal burdens. All this time they’ve been dealing with chronic problems in their families, their health or their work. They’re doing the best they can, but things don’t always get better. Their anguish doesn’t leave much room forMORE...
You may have noticed that I frequently use ellipses—three dots in a row—as part of my writing style. (I am also indebted to em dashes [–] to bracket my digressions.) Both punctuation conventions can raise eyebrows among highbrow writers—I am not worthy of that designation—as excuses for less-than-adequate writing. I understand that opinion, and try to keep my use of these devices to aMORE...
This entry is part of an occasional series in which metaphorical ideas find their way onto your screen. Its roots are simple: When you look with fresh eyes, there may be life lessons to find in just about anything. Today: When are rocks not solid? Is “rock-solid” a reliable part of your metaphorical vocabulary? If so, you might want to think again! It turns out that granite—one of our all-timeMORE...
In less time than it takes to parse “I ain’t no whippersnapper, Sonny,” I’ll be observing a birthday whose number is linked in *Scripture with being strong. When my father reached that milestone, his birthday card included my simple message: “You made it!” I went on to extol the continuing strengths I saw in him. As I approach that same number of years, I know that I can’t credit my well-being toMORE...
Lying might seem like a necessary social skill. But not when it runs amuck among or inside us. When that happens, lying can careen out of control as it infects more and more of our soul. And what’s “The Big Lie?” That lying accomplishes more than it harms. Lying damages liars. One deception eventually requires a supporting cast of falsehoods that becomes too complex. Liars begin to believeMORE...
Sometimes vengeance seems appropriate, even righteous. Great crimes against humanity, rampant selfishness, persistent evil intent, shameless dishonesty, callous harming of others—all feel like legitimate reasons for 1comeuppance. The greater the crimes, the louder the calls for retribution. This is an ageless notion. In ancient Greek mythology, these concepts hearken back to TheMORE...
It’s a well-established axiom that practical wisdom comes to older adults as they reflect back on lifetimes of experience. I have wondered how that truism might relate to our sinfulness—whether we who are older can still experience any of the “seven deadly sins.” To review: those transgressions— originally identified by the *Desert Fathers—include greed, lust, sloth, gluttony, wrath, pride andMORE...
I’ve always been just a bit concerned about the part of the Ten Commandments story that notes God’s “visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of those that hate me.” (Exodus 20:5 KJV) It has never seemed fair that someone could be punished for what their ancestors did so many years ago. Fair or not, though, this may be true biologicallyMORE...
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.