Tag Archives: life review

Life Review: My Hardest Work Experience

Posted on March 12, 2020 by Bob Ritzema

I recently talked with a young adult friend about difficulties she’s having at work, and ended up telling her about the most difficult experience I had in five decades in the workplace. I’ve decided to write out the story as … Continue reading →

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Time’s Eunuch

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Bob Ritzema

What does it mean to be “time’s eunuch”? That phrase is found in a sonnet written by Gerard Manley Hopkins in March, 1889, just a few months before he died. The sonnet, which can be found here, was proceeded by … Continue reading →

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Learning About Life From The Obituaries

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Bob Ritzema

Do you read the obituaries? Though I’m getting to the age where I probably should, I seldom do. Just as pedestrians tend to depend on others to look for traffic when crossing the road, I depend on my mom and … Continue reading →

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The Holy Fool

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

I recently read Harold Fickett’s 1983 novel The Holy Fool. Haven’t heard of it? Neither had I. It addresses some interesting issues concerning midlife, though, and that captured my interest. Fickett tells the story of Ted Marsh, a Baptist pastor … Continue reading →

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Becoming A Practicing Psychologist: How I Now View It

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

This post is a follow-up to one I wrote earlier about a transition during my early 30s—leaving my budding career as a college professor to work as a clinical psychologist in the Michigan prison system. I thought of this as a midlife transition. … Continue reading →

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My Life Story: Becoming a Practicing Psychologist

Posted on February 13, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

In a previous post about changes in midlife, I described several significant changes that I underwent. The first of these was that, at age 32, I decided that I wasn’t satisfied teaching what I hadn’t practiced, and sought part-time (later full-time) clinical … Continue reading →

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My Midlife Crisis? Which One?

Posted on January 29, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

I wrote earlier about the First, Second, and Third Spiritual Journeys of life. The Second Journey—having to do with some sort of reorientation during middle adulthood—encompasses the “mid-life crisis” of common parlance. This post will describe the concept of the mid-life … 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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Depression in Older Adults: Causes

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Bob Ritzema

Last week, I posted about the characteristics of depression in the elderly.  I’m now following up with a discussion of the causes of depression in this age group.  What causes depression in the elderly is quite similar to what causes depression at other … Continue reading →

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