For those who are 55 yrs. old and above, please read this.

·        Between 55 and death. It's time to use the money you saved up. Use it and enjoy it. Don't just keep it for those who may have no notion of the sacrifices you made to get it. Remember there is nothing more dangerous than a son or daughter-in-law with big ideas for your hard-earned capital.

 

·        Warning: This is also a bad time for investments, even if it seems wonderful or fool-proof. They only bring problems and worries. This is a time for you to enjoy some peace and quiet.

 

·        Stop worrying about the financial situation of your children and grandchildren, and don't feel bad spending your money on yourself. You've taken care of them for many years, and you've taught them what you could. You gave them an education, food, shelter, and support. The responsibility is now theirs to earn their own money.

 

·        Keep a healthy life, without great physical effort. Do moderate exercise (like walking every day), eat well, and get your sleep. It's easy to become sick, and it gets harder to remain healthy. That is why you need to keep yourself in good shape and be aware of your medical and physical needs. Keep in touch with your doctor, do tests even when you're feeling well. Stay informed.

 

·        Always buy the best, most beautiful items for your significant other. The key goal is to enjoy your money with your partner. One day one of you will miss the other, and the money will not provide any comfort then, enjoy it together.

 

·        Don't stress over the little things. You've already overcome so much in your life. You have good memories and bad ones, but the important thing is the present. Don't let the past drag you down and don't let the future frighten you. Feel good in the now. Small issues will soon be forgotten.

 

·        Regardless of age, always keep love alive. Love your partner, love life, love your family, love your neighbor, and remember: "A person is not old as long as they have intelligence and affection."

 

·        Be proud, both inside and out. Don't stop going to your hair salon or barber, do your nails, go to the dermatologist and the dentist, keep your perfumes and creams well stocked. When you are well-maintained on the outside, it seeps in, making you feel proud and strong.

 

·        Don’t lose sight of fashion trends for your age but keep your own sense of style. You ’ve developed your own sense of what looks good on you – keep it and be proud of it. It ’s part of who you are.

 

·        ALWAYS stay up to date. Read newspapers, watch the news. Go online and read what people are saying but keep an open mind. Remember everything you read online is not the truth. Make sure you have an active email account and try to use some of those social networks. You'll be surprised at what old friends you'll meet.

 

·        Respect the younger generation and their opinions. They may not have the same ideas as you, but they are the future and will take the world in their direction. Give advice, not criticism, and try to remind them that yesterday's wisdom still applies today.

 

 

·        Never use the phrase: “In my time.” Your time is now. If you ’re alive, you are part of this time.

 

·        Some people embrace their golden years, while others become bitter and surly. Life is too short to waste your days on the latter. Spend your time with positive, cheerful people, it'll rub off on you and your days will seem that much better. Spending your time with bitter people will make you feel older and harder to be around.

 

·        Do not surrender to the temptation of living with your children or grandchildren (if you have a financial choice, that is). Sure, being surrounded by family sounds great, but we all need our privacy. They need theirs and you need yours. Even then, do so only if you feel you really need the help or do not want to live by yourself

 

·        Don't abandon your hobbies. If you don't have any, make new ones. You can travel, hike, cook, read, dance. You can adopt a cat or a dog, grow a kitchen garden, play cards, checkers, chess, dominoes, golf.

 

·        Try to go. Get out of the house, meet people you haven't seen in a while, experience something new (or something old). The important thing is to leave the house from time to time. Go to museums, go walk through a park. Get out there.

 

·        Speak in courteous tones and try not to complain or criticize too much unless you really need to. Try to accept situations as they are.

 

·        Pains and discomfort go hand in hand with getting older. Try not to dwell on them but accept them as a part of life.

 

·        If you've been offended by someone – forgive them. If you've offended someone-apologize. Don't drag around resentment with you. It only serves to make you sad and bitter. It doesn't matter who was right. Someone once said: "Holding a grudge is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die." Don't take that poison. Forgive, forget, and move on with your life.

 

·        Laugh. Laugh away your worries Remember, you are one of the lucky ones. You managed to have a life, a long one. Many never get to this age, never get to experience a full life.

 

·        My valued friends enjoy a peaceful life at this point in your life A the song says...Don't worry... be happy. 🥰😘

 

Thank you to *Anonymous* who created this list.

Are you perfect?

Do you know people who are perfectionists? I do and I am puzzled sometimes by their outlook on life. When I was teaching, I had students who were perfectionist who would not turn in projects and risk failure, because they could not turn in something that, in their mind was less than perfect.  I would tell them that the perfection they are seeking is beyond their comprehension. I said don't be fooled, you have made no mistakes. The work you have done, and the challenges at hand were crafted to help you deliver the insights that'll make possible the best project you can make. Some would accept the advice and hand in their projects, others would not and take a failure.

 

For my friends who are perfectionists, here is something to consider: 

We are faced every day with hurdles, life is not easy, nor is it meant to be. However, you didn't come here to face hurdle after hurdle after hurdle without the skills to master them. It's not as if by mastering your issues today, more issues will be added tomorrow. That only happens when you deny them today. Master your issues, face them today, and be free.

 

Get through what you must get through, today even though you don’t understand it all. Understand what troubles you, today. Do what you can, today. And all the rest will be made easy. Life is a series of small steps that take us forward and sometimes backwards, so little can yield so much. A new perspective, an admission, a surrender to the truth  that you are not perfect— however painful — changes everything.

Has the sun stopped shinning for you?

Here is something to think about the next time you feel really hurt, angry, or really, really upset, check and see if the sky is any less blue, the sun any less radiant, the birds have stopped singing, or the flowers have lost their scent.

 I'll bet you'll find that life has gone on much as before. Other people who have been violated, shaken, and humbled, and are struggling to make sense of what has happened to them still get up in the morning, ready to face the day. The sun still rises too early in the summer or too late in winter, the storm clouds still gather but break when the wind blows them away so the sun can come up. The birds still sing to woo a mate or defend their territory. They don’t know, or care about what has just happened to us. We may have friends and family who to whom we can turn to vent and they will listen, indicate that we are right to have the feelings we have. Then they will move on to face their problems, their fears, and their life challenges.

 But for those who don’t know us or our situation, life will go on for them, as they battle to move forward. The sun will not stop shinning because we are upset, angry or hurt. The birds will not stop singing, although we may not hear them as we did ourselves into a deep hole of despair. We have a choice, dig our hole and stay sheltered and alone, or face the day, acknowledge the sun, listen to the birds and move to deal with our problem, without the anger, hurt, or upset. We need to realize that life for everyone is consumed by the powers of now and the inevitabilities of love, understanding, and eternal life, and once we realize that we need not miss a beat as we accept and move on with life.

 

Every picture tells a story

With time on my hands I have been digitising old slides, not slides of places but slides of people. We all know that it is not remarkable when looking back how images create feelings and transport us back to another time. Every picture tells a story don’t it  or says Rod Stewart

 It is nice to remember the story around each picture as your mind fills in the details of a story only you may remember. When we look at old photos, it's obvious isn't it? We think we were good-looking back then. Really good-looking. Yet somehow, at the time, you didn't quite believe it. We were to busy doing life, living our story, bringing in people to fill in the plot lines that we wanted to create and live. Life was exciting and full of opportunity. Our children look at our old photo’s and sometime they will ask questions, other times the significance of the picture will be clear to them but sometimes they dismiss the picture, and with it the story and the feelings we had at the time. They are not being cruel or selfish, they are too busy living their own life and creating their own stories.

 We learn from yesterday, because today we are even better looking than we were then. Way better. We are smarter, too. Funnier. Wiser. More compassionate. Less serious. And we are totally sauntering!

 We know we learn and grow, and we know that our children, our young will learn and grow and become better than they are today. Our thoughts, our wisdom, our understanding of life has or will be passed down to the next generation and one day they will be looking at old photos’ or videos or what ever technology has invented to help us preserve our stories. They will look back and think, every picture tells a story and they will be eager to share that story with the next generation.