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With Mother’s Day fast approaching, the motherless among us–like Judi, Bill and me–can probably use a good dose of mother love and advice. And where better to turn than to a Jewish Mother. The following video is courtesy of our friends at the LA Jewish Home. Congratulations to the LA Jewish home on their Centennial celebration. Social Bookmarking We’ve been hearing a lot about the recent research showing that elders are happier than twenty-somethings. In fact, it looks like they are happier than anyone—even at the very end of life. Many are skeptical of this research. From an adult standpoint, an elder’s decline, frailty, pain and illness are quite depressing. How can my aging and ill parents be happy? We sure wouldn’t be in their shoes. The research must be flawed. Our Ted-talk-tracking friend recently sent us a link to a talk by Laura Carstensen who explores the research in depth and is convinced that the research conclusions are correct. So when Dad told me “I’m fine” the day before he died, he very well might have meant it. Here is Dr. Carstensen’s talk: Social Bookmarking Continue reading this post here A friend alerted us to the recently posted TED talk given by Dr. Peter Saul, an intensive care physician in Australia. The problem of frail elders’ lives artificially prolonged in the absence of clear instructions about end of life wishes is not simply an American problem. Dr. Saul’s research in Australian intensive care units illuminates the difficulty families everywhere experience at the end of life if there are no instructions and no history of open discussion about these tough issues. Deaths made difficult by inappropriate medical intervention are not only inhumane and expensive. They leave their mark on those closest to us. Caregivers may be left to struggle with many difficult feelings in the aftermath. The guilt–did we really do our best? The fear–is this how we will die? Dr. Saul encourages us to … Continue reading this post here One of my favorite books these days is called What are Old People For? by William Thomas, M.D. If you need your consciousness raised about ageism–and most of us do, I think–this is the book to read first. Now, Dr. Bill has written a novel. This is actually his second novel, and it is called Tribes of Eden. Set in a post-apocalyptic America, the book addresses the issues of loss of freedom and inter-generational cooperation and eventual triumph over an opportunistic totalitarian authority. It is available in paperback or electronically. Dr. Bill talks about the book in this video. You can see an excerpt of the book by clicking this link. Social Bookmarking Poking around on line for a bit of inspiration I came across this meaty morsel written by attorney Orrin Onken and republished in Ronni Bennett’s blog Time Goes By: The Older Americans’ Pledge We will not be judged by the values of youth. We will not be expelled from work or play. We will not equate aging with illness. We will not be a subject matter for experts. We will not be the objects of condescension or ridicule. We will not be a social or economic problem. We will not be trivialized. We will not be docile. We will not be interned. We will treat our later decades as a unique stage of human development. We will … Continue reading this post here |
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