Note Found in a Wallet

Last week at our Brazos Towers residents' meeting, our director, Scott Perlman, read us a letter supposedly found after his death in the wallet of Bear Bryant, the legendary Alabama football coach.  I'm reprinting it here because it was so inspiring.

The Magic Bank Account

Imagine that you had won the following prize in a contest.  Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400 in your private account for your use.  However, the prize has rules:

     1. Everything you didn't spend each day would be taken away from you.

     2. You may not transfer money into some other account.

     3. You may only spend it.

     4. Each morning, upon awakening, the bank opens your account with another $86,400 for that day.

     5. The bank can end the account without warning at any time it can say, "Game over."  It can close the account and you will not receive a new one.

What would you personally do?

You would buy anything and everything you wanted, right?

Not only for yourself, but for all the people you love and care for.  Even for people you don't know because you couldn't possibly spend it all on yourself, right?

ACTUALLY, the game is REAL.

Shocked??? Yes!

Each of us already is a winner of this prize.  We just can't seem to see it.

The PRIZE is TIME.

     1. Each morning we awaken to 86,400 seconds as a gift of life.

     2. And when we go to sleep at night, any remaining time is not credited to us.

     3. What we haven't used up that day is forever lost.

     4. Yesterday is forever gone.

     5. Each morning the account is refilled, but the bank can dissolve your account at any time without warning.

So what will you do with your 86,400 seconds?

Those seconds are worth so much more than the same amount in dollars.  Think about it and remember to enjoy every second of your life, because time races by so much quicker than you think.

Take care of yourself, be happy, love deeply and know and pursue your priorities.  

Start "spending!"

Writing for Our Families, Ourselves and Others

Last Sunday the Senior Memoir course I've attended for the past year held a reading at the Jewish Community Center.  We had expected to read our entire 1500 word pieces but we were told that each of us could read for three minutes.  "Bummer," I thought.  But three minutes turned out to be perfect.  Some of the pieces were humorous, some were bittersweet, some filled with courage.  Our wonderful instructor, Cate Weiss Orcutt, introduced the program.  We were all touched by her statement that she'd learned so much from us.  We made Cait a "word cloud."  Each of us contributed 10 words describing her and they became a lovely heart shape on a  card that we presented to her at the end of the program.

This course has been an inspiration for me.  I'd gotten lazy about writing but weekly prompts and one workshop essay made me write continuously.  

I'm going to be doing a Legacy Letter course at an independent living facility next month, and I hope the attendees will be inspired to write.  If you want to know more about Legacy Letters, check out celebrationsoflife.net You don't have to be a senior to write one of these.  You might want to write to your parents, your child upon his/her graduation or wedding, to a teacher or a mentor or a special friend.  Legacy letters can express gratitude forgiveness, hopes, values--anything important to you.  You might read "The Forever Letter" for ideas.  You can find this book on Amazon.  The only hard and fast rule about writing Legacy Letters if to write from your heart.

Quotes for the Week: Becoming

Maybe the journey isn't so much about becoming anything.

Maybe it's about unbecoming everything that isn't really you,

So you can be who you were meant to be in the first place.

Don't give up on the person you are becoming.

Stop being who you were

And become who you are.

      Paul Coehlo

The thing that is really hard and really amazing

Is giving up on being perfect 

And beginning to work on being yourself.

Anna Quidlen

Start where you are. 

Use what you have.

Do what you can.

Arthur Ashe

Books of August

I started Michelle Obama's book in July and finished it in August.  It's one of my favorite books this year.  She begins with her childhood and college years: Becoming Me.  Next she talks about her meeting with Barak Obama and their marriage:  Becoming Us.  Finally she talks about their years in the White House and her mission as First Lady to encourage healthier eating for youngsters:  Becoming More.  She grew up in a family of modest means in the South Side of Chicago, was accepted to Princeton for undergraduate school and to Harvard Law and worked for a Chicago law firm where she met a charismatic intern who was first a friend and later much more.  She's very honest about her misgivings about her husband going into politics and about her life in the White House.  It's a fascinating story, and it reminded me that no matter what our ages and circumstances, throughout our lives we're always "becoming."

How Old is Old?

The other day I glanced at Hints from Heloise, and here's what I learned:
"Dearest Readers, Did you know that AGE DISCRIMINATION IS AGAINST THE LAW?  The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defines age discrimination as 'Treating an applicant or employee less favorably because of his or her age.' This law applies to people who are AGE 40 OR OLDER." (capital letters mine!)

Oh dear, if 40 is the beginning of old age, I am really really old.  But guess what.  I didn't feel old at 40 and I don't feel old now.  
And I bet many people of my generation don't feel so old either.
We have our aches and pains and we can be grumpy at times, but, thinking back, I was like that at 40, too.  Note: Advice for dealing with aches and pains:  I found this in the newspaper a few years back--try Two Old Goats Balm on this achy parts.  I'm not sure who the old goats are, but it does seem to work.  Granted it won't cure arthritis, but it's great for muscle or nerve pain.  You can get it from Amazon, where, of course, you can get anything you ever dreamed of.

As for me, I just retired last year, I do volunteer work here and in Galveston, I get out and about almost as much as ever, and I keep a "gratitude list" of nice things that have happened every day.

Anyway, I'm glad to know that employers can't discriminate against kids of 40 in hiring, job assignments, training, layoffs or benefits.  This doesn't seem to apply to social situations such as dating.  You have to take your changes there.

I once read a book about aging called Coming Into the End Zone and for those of us who really do fit that picture, we should do our best to keep active and cheerful and enjoy each day...hour...minute we have.