You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
42<br />
Happy to be an Older Adult<br />
By: Eric Thurman / Thrive Spiritually<br />
Stroll down the cosmetics aisle of a store and<br />
notice the labels. A popular sales pitch says<br />
that something is “Anti-Aging.”<br />
Those creams and lotions are best sellers among beauty products.<br />
But wait a minute! Anti-aging? Something about that isn’t right.<br />
We can’t say we’re anti-blue eyes or anti-left-handed people. So, aim<br />
to look your best, just don’t become anti-aging.<br />
There are subtle and sometimes harsh prejudices against aging. Not<br />
from me. I’m happy to be an older adult.<br />
Aging is good. Getting older is a blessing. In fact, the older you are,<br />
the more fortunate you are. A tragedy is when someone dies young.<br />
I’m grateful to have lived longer than both my grandfather and my<br />
father. By God’s grace, I hope to enjoy many more years.<br />
Aging isn’t something to be dreaded. A better approach is to welcome<br />
this season of life and relish its benefits.<br />
There are plenty of reasons why you and I matter. Did you know that<br />
over the last hundred years, the number of people over 65 grew five<br />
times faster than the overall population? We’re an important bunch.<br />
Our numbers will double again in the next ten years. Let’s hold our<br />
advanced years in high esteem.<br />
While many voices may be condescending about age, the Bible is<br />
pro-aging. It’s a key source for my anticipation about what’s ahead.<br />
Psalm 92 extols old age. Verses 12 and 13 encourage us to recognize<br />
that we are meant to flourish.<br />
Then, verse 14 gives specific examples of what God intends for us:<br />
“They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green”<br />
This is good news. “Bear fruit” is an ancient way of saying that God’s<br />
design is for our lives to be filled with meaning, purpose, and value as<br />
we age.<br />
What does this look like? It paints a vibrant picture of a thriving plant<br />
that stays fresh, green, and continually produces desirable fruit.<br />
This is more than reminiscing about our past. God wants us to<br />
flourish throughout this season of our lives, too!<br />
Eric Thurman is author of Thrive in Retirement, available wherever<br />
books are sold. Take his free self-assessment at 20Quiz.com.<br />
Learn more about him at EricThurman.com.<br />
<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
What’s in a Word?<br />
By: Susan Goldfein / Susan’s Unfiltered Wit<br />
Now that I’ve confused my Spell Check and<br />
anyone reading this, perhaps it’s time for the<br />
ESL quiz. That is, English as a Second Language<br />
as spoken by our high school and college-age<br />
grandkids.<br />
When the children of our children return home, they bring not only<br />
their dirty laundry but a vocabulary of the latest slang words that has<br />
you wondering if your hearing aids are working properly.<br />
Below I present a few of <strong>2024</strong>’s latest introductions into the English<br />
language. It’ll take a while before the Oxford English Dictionary catches<br />
up, but in the meantime, you won’t have to stare at the eighteen-yearold<br />
across the breakfast table and plead “I’m baby. ELI 5.”<br />
A multiple choice test to see if you know the answers.<br />
Cheugy<br />
1. A new candy bar guaranteed to remove your fillings<br />
2. When repeated, weird train sounds<br />
3. Someone reminding you to eat more slowly<br />
4. Something once fashionable<br />
Cozzielius<br />
1. Long-lost brother of Marcus Aurelius<br />
2. Something that’s super-comfy!<br />
3. A cover made exclusively for an Elius teapot<br />
4. Pressure related to the cost of living<br />
ELI 5<br />
1. Five-piece musical group with the same first name<br />
2. The ELI that falls between 4 and 6<br />
3. A cockney version of someone who failed to tell the truth 5 times<br />
4. I don’t understand - Explain Like I’m 5;<br />
Delulu<br />
1. Forgotten lyric from the Cole Porter song It’s De Lovely<br />
2. Two British bathrooms as described by someone from Brooklyn<br />
3. Cousin of the woman who trimmed Samson’s hair<br />
4. Delusional, unrealistic<br />
Side Eye<br />
1. An image from a Picasso painting<br />
2. A nickname for someone with exceptional peripheral vision<br />
3. A cut of meat like a rib eye<br />
4. Someone regarding you with suspicion<br />
Moots<br />
1. The bodies of water surrounding a castle<br />
2. A pair of boots that can also double as mittens<br />
3. Are we there yet?<br />
4. Mutual folks who interact with each other on social media<br />
ANSWERS: Number 4 for all the words! How did you do?<br />
Susan Goldfein’s newest book, Laughing My Way Through the<br />
Third Stage, is available at Amazon.com, BN.com, Read her blog<br />
at: www.SusansUnfilteredWit.com. Email Susan: SusanGoldfein@<br />
aol.com.
Change language