I spent six days in Phoenix Arizona celebrating my mother’s 98th birthday. It was a continuing education for me in the aging process. I have never known anyone as old as my dear mother. She is blessed to live independently in her own apartment with meals available in a community dining room served by an array of young people in training for the food service industry.
I was able to observe some of the challenges these old folks face daily to their quality of life. Some of them are overcome by clutter in their residences, a personal problem. Most common is the challenge to mobility. The reduced strength and flexibility is pretty well understood, however witnessing it directly is real home learning. The clues necessary to be employed for their short term memory loss are to say the least creative
Mostly I came away with an awareness of attitude, certainly applicable to our own lives. If you can’t observe your own challenges and laugh, you’ll go crazy. I salute these older folks and their humor. I’m paying attention.
New Cottage In The Woods 
It’s probably worthy of note, too, that our mother still gets around without using a cane or walker, though some people have taken her to task for this. True, it may not be the wisest decision, but it’s a point of pride with her. She not only goes for a walk almost daily, but she also uses a rowing machine. Her biggest challenge, it seems, is one our father faced when he reached his 80s: What am I still doing here? (I ‘ll leave that to a higher authority to answer.)