Aging
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On Death and Loss
The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of those depths. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross After a break for the holidays, I am back to my Coming of Age journey. So much has happened since the pause. Most importantly, ICE… Continue reading
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Banana, Sunset, Chair
Yes, Mother. I can see you are flawed. You have not hidden it. That is your greatest gift to me. Alice Walker Last week I had my Medicare Wellness Check. For those of you not on Medicare, it’s a yearly visit with your doctor to evaluate your health both physically and emotionally. In addition to… Continue reading
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Who’s on First?
History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. Karl Marx Shortly after Mom’s 90th birthday she said to me, “How did I get so old?” My answer was quick and to the point. “You didn’t die.” While I am far short of Mom’s eventual 98 years, I can’t help but ask myself the same… Continue reading
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First Frost
All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost. J. R. R. Tolkien We had our first frost of the season on Saturday. Having lived in Minnesota since the 1980s, I know that no… Continue reading
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On Being Human
We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin I began an on-again, off-again relationship with Unitarianism sometime in the late 1990s. Admittedly, I was introduced to the religion by my wife who grew up Unitarian. I was raised a Catholic, but somewhere… Continue reading
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Get Off My Lawn
I’ll know my song well before I start singing. Bob Dylan I like to say that I catch nostalgia like a cold. It grabs hold of me and clouds my senses with illusions and fantasies. Play Me and You and a Dog Named Boo and I’m 13-years-old driving in the car with Dad up to… Continue reading
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All the World is Birthday Cake
You know you’re getting old when the candles cost more than the cake. Bob Hope Last week I had another one of those birthday things. It wasn’t one that ends in zero, so it didn’t have the gravitas of a big transition. Still, I am of the belief that even these lesser-milestone birthdays are special… Continue reading
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Reframing Aging
My position has always been that the way people age and the signs that we show of aging is nature’s way of tattooing. It’s natural scarification, and the life you lead gives you the symbols and the emblems of your life, the road map you followed. Frances McDormand As I wrote about in my article… Continue reading
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Mom
It may be possible to gild pure gold, but who can make his mother more beautiful? Mahatma Gandhi My mother, Bernadine Mary Hazinski Prokop, passed away this past Friday at 4:40 a.m. Arizona Time. She was 98 years old. There is much that I would like to say about Mom, but it’s too early in… Continue reading
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How Old Am I
If I had to choose just one dayTo last my whole life throughIt would surely be that SundayThe day that I met you George David Weiss “How old am I?” She looked up from her book. “What?” “I said, how old am I?” “Don’t be silly. You know how old you are.” “I want you… Continue reading
Can You Hear Me Now 