My job is to plan for catastrophe, yet Jane’s story was an echo of my own. My mother, a fiercely independent and proud woman, worked until she was 86 years old; but after she was forced into a nursing home at age 93, she died within weeks. Ethel enjoyed a long life. Its end was certainly not a direct result of the loss of independence and personal dignity she experienced in the nursing home. But if I had helped her plan for her very old age, she might have spent her last months surrounded by neighbors and friends, instead of professional caretakers. (more…)

There are really no wrong reasons to choose an assisted living home arrangement in a senior community. With assisted living a person can still be as independent and free as they always have been, plus they also don’t have to worry about all the things that may become more difficult as times goes on. (more…)

Geezer, old fart, old folk, or shaman, elder and tzaddik: which will you be? in many cultures the elderly are treated with respect and even reverence. In modern day America and other “modern societies” the aged are treated as casts offs. Put away in retirement/nursing homes. We’re no longer important, hip, the only “buzz” about senior citizens is their drain on the economy because of Social Security.

I don’t know about you but as I enter this “Third Age” and look around I see many vibrant, interesting older people still very much with it. (more…)