Tag Archives: elderly

Faithfulness in Old Age: John M. Perkins

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

Yesterday I attended the talk by John M Perkins during Calvin College’s January Series. I’ve known about Perkins for most of my adult life—his leaving Mississippi as a young man after his brother was killed by a town marshal, planning … Continue reading →

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A Five-Sentence Life Story

Posted on December 30, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

I wrote recently about the benefits of life review. Since I left full-time work in the summer of 2012, I have been thinking more about my past, that that seems to be leading to a time of life review for me. … Continue reading →

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Life Review

Posted on December 7, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

A while ago, there was an interesting post on the Changing Aging blog on the topic of memoir and life review.  The author, Gaea Yudron, the director of Sage’s Play, an organization that promotes successful aging, wrote. “As we grow older, we … Continue reading →

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If We No Longer Retire, What Will We Do When We Get Old?

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

I’ve been writing about retirement and leisure.  First, I considered the fact that the majority of older workers don’t have the money to permit them to totally leave the workforce.  I then looked at the history of retirement, discovering that … Continue reading →

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Meeting Our Parents, Again

Posted on November 25, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

Jan Wilberg, blogging at Red’s Wrap, wrote a beautiful post recently in which she imagines traveling back in time and meeting her parents before they became her parents. She then performs a sort of time travel by reflecting on a … Continue reading →

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The History of Retirement

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

In an earlier post, I discussed the failure of most workers in the US to save for retirement, with the result that many will continue working longer than the previous generation of older adults.  To put this change regarding the timing of … Continue reading →

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Retirement Is Changing: Is That Good Or Bad?

Posted on October 30, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

Most of us who have reached midlife but have not yet retired can’t count on an employer-provided pension plan to provide for us in retirement.  Social Security benefits by themselves provide only a bare-bones financial skeleton to support us, so … Continue reading →

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The Blessings of Old Age

Posted on October 7, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

Sister Joan Chittister has  written recently about the blessings of aging.  There are losses that occur with aging, but there are also gains.  Our youth-oriented society focuses mostly on the losses; thankfully, writers like Sister Chittister and Bill Thomas remind … Continue reading →

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Gray Divorce

Posted on September 3, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

Relationships are as important in the second half of life as in the first half.  Unfortunately, relationships in mid- and late-life are not immune to struggle and even failure.  One recent phenomenon is an increase in divorces among middle aged … Continue reading →

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Who Is Art For?

Posted on August 20, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

This Friday, August 23, Square Inch Community Church, which I attend, will sponsor Inchfest, a music and art festival.  Judging from photos of the crowd at last year’s festival, no more than 10% of those in attendance were middle age or … Continue reading →

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