https://dversepoets.com/ asked that we write a selfie poem today. You already know me – if you follow my blog. But, if you’re new to JanBeek, here’s a taste of who JanBeek is:
J olly A nd N aughty! E specially T alented at L oving. ❤ A lways U ltra R esponsible and A ltruistic, B ut E ager to be E ntirely K ind! M ostly A uthentic and N ever mean.
Yes! That”s me!!
How about trying an acrostic – using your full name (including your middle name) to describe yourself?
Are you fed up with it? Do you feel it is robbing us of our sense of purpose and our wisdom?
These are some questions I gleaned from Scilla Elworthy, the elderly South African woman in the Ted Talk above:
Are you fully alive in your body? Do you have energy and attractiveness in your soul? Are you content with what is? Can you remove the mask, let the wrinkles show, and still like yourself?
Dementia is a real fear for me. My mother was diagnosed with it before she died. My sister is in a home today – a nursing home – being cared for because she has Alzheimer’s. It is in my family. Is it in my future? I cannot dwell on that! I must live in the NOW and love myself so I can love others. The keys are:
gratitude,
prayer and meditation,
time in nature… being outside with things that are alive
What about death? It is inevitable. Approach it with curiosity. Think through it. Know that death is not finality.
What are the gains of growing older? We can speak out! Dare to speak up about those things that we think are wrong! Stand up for those things! Make a contribution by making a difference – by being true to ourselves.
Know that with age comes wisdom. Wise, experienced leaders are a gift to the world. As we age, we can be that older, wiser person who sees beyond the horizon. The world need us!
But age and wisdom are not synonymous. Wisdom does not come automatically. We can’t live in a foxhole and gain wisdom. We need to go out and risk adventure. Risk rebuke. Risk the world hating you. We need to be true to ourselves as we lift our heads to what is happening around us and seek the solutions to the challenges we all face. We can’t be ostriches with our head in the sand.
A friend of mine said she has decided that the best way to avoid dissension is just to avoid having an opinion. “I try to remain totally objective – with no opinion expressed. Opinions just garner arguments,” she said.
We can’t let ourselves live in that kind of fear! Avoidance invites stagnation.
“Whoever is free from all fear will always be safe,” Scilla Elworthy said in the Ted Talk above. So, we must let go of any fear we have of speaking out.
What do you care about? What’s your opinion about aging? Let’s hear it!!
Derrick told me I earned every wrinkle. I told him, “… and every silver hair, too!”
I’m not afraid of growing older. Just don’t call me old!! See ya tomorrow. Love, JanBeek
God bless the Jefferson County Mental Health Local Advisory Council here in Montana!
Let’s all shout it out, “LOVE IS LOUDER!”
Let’s make it true!!
Th distance between me and my friend, Carol Orr, is from here to Eternity … but our love is louder than the distance! I was her Senior Companion – and she was my friend and mentor… always right for a laugh and a hug … always ready to share her 95 years of wisdom from her beautiful, sparkling soul.
LOVE is LOUDER than death! LOVE is LOUDER than disguises! LOVE sees through the darkness to the sparkle beneath and behind. LOVE brings out the best in us and in others. Let your LOVE SHINE!!
The motivational video below tells us, “One of life’s gifts is that its greatest moments are often disguised.” Our inability to see through the dark glasses finds us sometimes lost in a state of hopelessness. We live disguised as people behind a gloom of despair, seeing life as lost and hard.
My friend, Carol, was an upbeat person who enjoyed life to its fullest I posted a blog about her back on August 15, 2018 when she was in the hospital, looking toward the end of her time on earth. If you have time, check it out at
Carol spent her last months in our local nursing home, The Manor, hooked up to oxygen, and knowing her time was short, but LOVE was LOUDER than impending death. She never lost her smile nor her sense of humor. Ah, we should all be so blessed!
When all hope of living an eternity on earth, or of solving all the earth’s problems is lost, we need to take off the disguises, toss the dark glasses, and take each moment to see life’s infinite possibilities. What you seek is waiting. You are never too old to seek LOVE and you are never through positively influencing others – even (and maybe most especially) after leaving this earth.
Love is LOUDER
LOUDER than ANYTHING!
Every day you are :
smarter and
stronger and
better equipped
wiser and
sharper and
braver
What you seek is waiting for you. Go for it!
Love is Louder
Shout it Out!! I LOVE YOU!!! See ya tomorrow. Hugs, JanBeek
This list of wisdom gained through the ages is beautifully done. I know you will appreciate it as much as I do. Click on the word “ages” below and tell SJ at “Change Therapy” how much you appreciate her blog, too.
“Throughout the Ages Age 6: I’ve learned that I like my teacher because she cries when we sing “Silent Night.” Age 7: I’ve learned that our dog …
Have a great Sunday afternoon, my friends. We just returned from a wonderful worship service outdoors on this beautiful day. It was predicted to be cccccold – and we were told to dress warmly. But, God is good! It was a comfortable morning in the mid-60s with the sun peeking in and out of clouds.
I video-taped on my phone some of the special music with Jim, Jaime and George singing; Jaime on the keyboard and Jim playing his saw! And of course, I recorded the sermon in my typical poetic fashion. Will share them with you later this afternoon. Come on back!
Every time Bob and I see someone who is driving like they don’t have a brain in their gray and wrinkled head, we comment to one another, “Too many birthdays!” We’ve been doing that for years. And guess what? Now we are they!!
Gray and wrinkled Bob with graying TazE… Hey, her butt didn’t used to be gray!!!
Well, at least HE is they! At 81 (he’ll be 82 in December), Bob is 5 months ahead of me. He’ll always be older! I can smile in the rear view mirror, wear a hat to cover the gray, and pretend I’m still a young chick! Heck, age is just a matter of how you feel, right? HEALTH is everything! Love is essential. God is good!
Yup, today is my birthday… and for the next 5 months, Bob & I are the same age. No way!!
The hair may be gray, and the face has a few added wrinkles with “too many birthdays,” but age is a matter of the MIND. Right? If you don’t mind, I don’t mind!
Just don’t call me old!!
Tell me I’m “bee-YOU-tiful” like this card I received yesterday from Bob’s sister! (Thank you, Bonnie)
And pick a few flowers from your garden to decorate your table… like my neighbor, Sue, did yesterday. (God bless her)
Keep singing and dancing (ya gotta keep movin’), writing and blogging your thoughts, dreaming and making those dreams come true, living your passions, and you’ll never have “Too Many Birthdays” – no matter how many years the calendar tells you!!
It’s time to open presents, sing the birthday song, blow out a few candles (don’t try to count them!) and praise God for the years he has given me “Too Many Birthdays!” I’ll take ’em all – gladly!
I’m happy to be in the passenger seat! I thank God every day for my health, and for my driver, Bob!
Have a Fabulous Friday! I’ll see you tomorrow and tell you all about my “Happy (not too many) Birthday!”
Yesterday morning I posted a blog about music, color & life’s fascinations. (If you haven’t seen it, please click on that title over on the right margin – and enjoy!)
In it, I posted a video of an artist who sees color in music. I was fascinated by her artistry – and posted other things that fascinate me. My intent always is to keep myself thinking positively – and to help my blogging friends do likewise.
A friend of mine here in Ennis (who did not see my blog) was obviously thinking along the same wave lengths. He sent me a link to this video…
Treat yourself! You will be so inspired!!! Click below:
The focus is not on what you don’t have It is on what you have – and what you do with it!
Have a great rest of your day… And maximize your blessings!
The best version of yourself Is generous with everything you’ve got. You reach out to feed and help others, Never hoarding what’s in your pot.
When you look deep into your best, You see a person who is humble and kind. And if others don’t seem to see it, Don’t worry, my friend. They must be blind!
