As I mentioned in my last post, this was the theme of an excellent workshop/retreat I attended last month at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario.
“Resiliency in aging is different from when you were young,” workshop leader Teresa Bryant told us. Bryant is a psycho-therapist and former Director of Supportive Care at St. Joseph’s Hospice in London, Ontario. As she noted, “When you break your leg when you are young, you know it will heal completely. When you break your leg when you are older, you will probably walk differently and have certain ongoing limitations.”
She also noted that resiliency in aging is less about cure or achieving complete healing and “more about adapting to changes” in one’s life. The second half of life is all about negotiating losses and changes in our relationships, finances, and health. Our success in negotiating these changes, to a large degree, comes from our attitudes — in other words, from our inner self. Quoting author and spiritual director Kathleen Dowling Singh, Bryant said courage in our later years is also different from the brash determination of youth. “As with any other muscle, it starts with doing small things” and taking small steps. It often begins by paying closer attention to the people around us and being intentional about spending time in prayer and meditation. Check out the July/August 2019 issue of Aging Well* for more on this important topic and to subscribe to this excellent newsletter.
*Aging Well — Celebrating the Young at
Heart, is an e-magazine published by
Morcom Media Group, with news, features,
and commentary for people as they
age. Published 10 times a year: January/
February, March, April, May, June, July/
August, September, October, November
and December.
Publisher/Editor: Pat Moauro
Email: patmor123@gmail.com
Associate Editor: Glenn Cutforth
Email: gcutforth@teksavvy.com
Boomerality 