Here’s a question for you, what do I have in common with Madonna, Ellen DeGeneres, and Jamie Lee Curtis?

How about Kevin Bacon, Alec Baldwin, and Drew Carey?

If you guessed that we are all turning 65 this year, you would be right. 

All of us, along with another 3.65 million Americans will become - wait for it - senior citizens.

Fortunately for me, I work in the senior service industry and have been anticipating this for quite some time. However, for many of the millions who will turn 65 this year, there may be some fear and unease.

For those of you on the brink of this magic age, let me start with some good news. 

If you are feeling very good or very bad these days, it may be due to the recent rains.

Take it from two musical camps. In his hit “Laughter in the Rain,” Neil Sedaka croons “Ooh, how I love the rainy days, and the happy way I feel inside,” while The Carpenters declare “Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.”

How can one simple form of precipitation have such a diametric effect on people?

I’ve had time to contemplate these conflicting feelings, as we watch more than our normal share of rainfall.

Let’s start with the bad news first. Why would the presence of rain make us feel bad?

Many years ago, my father-in-law Danny, who was in his late 70s, was hanging new kitchen cabinets.  Part of the job meant moving some of the ceiling tiles.

When he moved the tile directly above the kitchen sink, he happened upon a paper bag holding $8,000 in cash. 

His wife, Mary, was apoplectic when he found it. She had worked as a housekeeper for many years and had been saving her earnings in that bag to pay for new appliances or other things she wanted that her husband was less than excited about purchasing.

I remember that day vividly as I think about

One of my favorite parts of my job is public speaking. I know that stirs up anxiety and fear in some people, but for me it’s invigorating.

Groups are beginning to meet in person again, and I’m enjoying making the rounds to the Senior Summit; Rotary, Kiwanis, Delta Cappa Gamma and Brandeis groups; places of faith; and women’s and men’s clubs.

These groups meet to socially connect, and they often invite speakers to share their knowledge and experience.

As I prepare for a presentation, I enjoy gathering facts, weaving in stories I think might help to make a point and designing a visual presentation to make it all pop. My goal with my audience is to make a connection and encourage them to think and feel.

And the goal for myself is to listen.

A few weeks ago, I attended a work conference with my husband. I was the trailing spouse, which meant I could relax and enjoy myself while he attended CPA classes.

A free vacation sounded good to me, especially after these past 24 months.

Yet little did I know just how restorative this trip would be. And I owe it all to the ocean.

The hotel television included a channel where one could just watch the waves come in and out at a nearby rocky beach on the property. After tuning in the evening before, I set out my first morning to find this cove and see if it really was as captivating as it appeared on TV.

The air was chilly. I put on my sweatsuit, laced up my sneakers and pointed myself in the direction of the ocean. It didn’t take me long to find the trail to the cove.

During the past year I’ve been on more than my fair share of Zoom meetings. Every such meeting has a personality of its own.

During the past year I’ve been on more than my fair share of Zoom meetings. Every such meeting has a personality of its own.

Take, for example, the Zoom meetings hosted by Community Care Licensing, a jurisdiction Senior Concerns falls under. With hundreds of people on the call, we are provided with guidance concerning COVID as it affects program protocols.

It’s understandable that during these types of large-scale meetings most attendees have their cameras turned off because they are listening to the speaker’s information and possibly taking notes. There is no opportunity for interaction unless you post a question in the chat.

For those not familiar with video platforms like Zoom, when logging in from your computer, you have two options: keep your camera on so you can be seen or turn your camera off so that th

I’ve never enjoyed confrontation. I’m happiest when everyone is getting along and working toward a shared goal. And believe me, that happens a lot—although it’s hard to discern that if you scan the media these days.

So many topics are polarizing. It’s hard to have a conversation without something coming up that causes angst.

I try my best to search out the facts and create what I think are informed opinions. But many times, depending on the source, information that is portrayed as fact really isn’t. Other times, facts are facts but people disagree with them. Sometimes everyone has it wrong and only time will reveal the truth.

I’ve been searching lately for new ways to handle situations where there is a difference of opinion.

Many years ago I took courses at the Center for Creative Leadership, a world-renowned leadership-development firm.

I worked for Dole at the time, and I guess they had high hopes for my changing the world, or at least improving my portion of the organization.

One of the courses I took was called “Leading Creatively.” I recall it vividly, mostly because of the unique lessons it provided on problem-solving.

Each of us was to come to the course with one or two key business issues that were giving us difficulty. The instructors would use a variety of creative exercises to help us find solutions.

Aging is something we learn from family, our community and our culture.

Sam, I’ll call him, is what can only be described as an 87-year-old curmudgeon. As a widower suffering from congestive heart failure, mostly homebound due to his fatigue and need for oxygen, he is bitter about his lot in life.

Sam’s son and daughter bear his wrath as he rails about the unfairness of getting older and how his life is not worth living. His children focus their energies on managing his illness. Any efforts on their part to add value to Sam’s life via grandchild visits or trips out to eat are met with indifference.

Sam may not know it, but he is teaching his family (children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren), as well as his remaining friends and neighbors, what aging is like.

After a 15-year hiatus, my mother is coming to California to visit me.

During the many years she was caring for my father, who had Parkinson’s disease, my mother could not bring herself to leave his side. But now that he’s gone, she is ready to make the journey from New Hampshire.

For the past few days I’ve been thinking about her visit. What do I want her to experience?

Certainly, I want her to see some obvious changes since the last time she visited, like the new home we moved into four years ago and our little cocker spaniel, Rolo.

And of course, I would like her to come to my workplace. I’ve planned for her to visit Senior Concerns and meet our board and staff and our participants. I’d like for her to feel firsthand the amazing care and support we give to seniors and caregivers in our community.

Not only will she see what I’ve devoted the past 15 years of my life to, but she’ll see the place where I’ve gained a lot of the knowledge I’ve used in helping my parents navigate getting older.