This blog is written by Lee Gale Gruen to help retirees, those soon to retire, baby boomers, and seniors reinvent themselves in this new stage of their lives called retirement. Her blog, public lecture, and self-help book on senior reinvention are titled: Reinventing Yourself in Your Retirement Years: Find Joy Excitement, and Purpose After You Retire. Her memoir is: Adventures with Dad: A Father and Daughter’s Journey Through a Senior Acting Class. The books’ descriptions follow her blog below. Both books are available at Amazon.com by clicking here and here. Visit her website at: LeeGaleGruen.com
Now, on to my blog:
Who defines what is ugly? Although that adjective can be applied to all walks of life, what about when it is directed toward human beings–specifically seniors?
How did aging and the physical signs of it become defined as unattractive? Why is the appearance of youth considered so much more desirable?
Too many seniors look in the mirror with disgust. They see OMG: wrinkles, flab, age spots, gray hair, and other signs of a normal process. Then, they look away in revulsion. This sickness is an equal opportunity malaise; it affects both sexes as they age. Although women seem to talk and do more about it, men are catching up fast.
How sad for us in that age demographic. Must we go through our “golden years” secretly despising ourselves? Can we choose to alter our point of view? Can we “age gracefully” as we’ve heard so much about but have no idea how to do?
Yes, of course we can. It is not mandatory or even necessary to buy into the current hype of: younger is better. We can pity the celebrities who appear and reappear looking “refreshed” when we only have to google their names to find out their awful secret: their real age.
We don’t need to chase the snake oil purveyors who promise us youth while charging outrageous amounts to work their sorcery. This may even involve putting our health and even our lives in danger by invasive procedures, all in a futile attempt to pretend we are younger. I’ve written often on this topic. Whenever I meet a senior who is obsessing about their aging appearance, it motivates me to tackle the matter once again.
Are you really going to spend the rest of your precious years as a recluse because you don’t dare show your older face in public? Are you able to discipline your mind to make your own decisions rather than having them made for you by the media and popular culture? Dare you change your outlook to embrace yourself as beautiful, regardless of the stage of life in which you find yourself?
That is my challenge to you. Yes, I challenge you to find happiness and contentment, which starts with accepting and loving yourself exactly as you are without the need for ongoing, external tweaks.
Photo credit: andrewr on VisualHunt.com
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SYNOPSIS OF BOOKS BY LEE GALE GRUEN
Reinventing Yourself in Your Retirement Years: Find Joy, Excitement, and Purpose After You Retire (self-help): Not a one-size-fits-all approach, this self-help book for retirees, those soon to retire, baby boomers, and seniors offers an individualized, detailed guide to assist readers in discovering activities and pursuits in this new stage of their lives called retirement, based on their own likes and comfort level. I learned the secret the hard way transitioning from retired probation officer to actress, author, public speaker, and blogger. Audience members at my lectures on senior reinvention requested a book on the subject. This is the result, and it contains the content of those talks and six years of posts from this blog. CLICK here TO PURCHASE FROM AMAZON.COM.
Adventures with Dad: A Father and Daughter’s Journey Through a Senior Acting Class (memoir): After retiring at age 60 from my 37-year career as a probation officer, I mistakenly enrolled in an acting class for seniors. A few weeks later, my mother died, and I invited my grieving, 85-year-old father to come to class with me. This is the true story of our magical journey attending that class together for three years, bonding more than ever. I wrote the comedy scenes we performed onstage twice a year in the acting class showcases, and all six scenes are included in the book. I eventually transitioned into the world of professional acting. As my fledgling, second career started going uphill, my dad’s health started going downhill. I would recount to him each of my new experiences while I sat beside his bed at the nursing home where he resided in his final years. CLICK here TO PURCHASE FROM AMAZON.COM.
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