Ron Pevny: Conscious Aging, Conscious Living!

1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:19,000
[Music]

2
00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:25,000
And now the podcast we're together, we discuss proactive aging on your terms, connecting

3
00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:31,000
to the professional advice of our special guests, while creating better days throughout the aging

4
00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:37,000
process. Now here's your host, Mark Turnbull.

5
00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:42,500
Hello everyone and I want to welcome you all back for another lively discussion on aging

6
00:00:42,500 --> 00:00:49,500
today. We are the podcast where together we explored the many options to aging on your terms.

7
00:00:49,500 --> 00:00:56,500
You can find aging today and our past eight years of programming on our website. All you

8
00:00:56,500 --> 00:01:04,500
got to do is dial into agingtoday.us and then those of you who would prefer to find us on your

9
00:01:04,500 --> 00:01:10,500
favorite podcast channels such as Spotify, Pandora and we're on so many. And today we're going

10
00:01:10,500 --> 00:01:16,500
to be on YouTube from here on out so we're excited about that and it is in video form.

11
00:01:16,500 --> 00:01:21,500
We're looking forward to expanding our footprint into the marketplace. So many of you are

12
00:01:21,500 --> 00:01:27,500
reaching out and wanting more information on the aging process. And then I do want to hear

13
00:01:27,500 --> 00:01:33,000
from all of you our listeners out there. We want to know all the questions that you're asking

14
00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:38,500
on the aging process. And if you know of any aging experts that you would like to introduce

15
00:01:38,500 --> 00:01:45,500
to aging today, just reach out to me your host, Mark Turnbull. And my email is Mark at aging

16
00:01:45,500 --> 00:01:56,500
today.us. That's Mark with a K at aging today.us. Well, one of the things that we always say on aging today

17
00:01:56,500 --> 00:02:02,500
is if you're not too busy being born, you're too busy aging. And we're all aging at different

18
00:02:02,500 --> 00:02:10,500
levels at different times on this earth. And so we're open to all kinds of discussion.

19
00:02:10,500 --> 00:02:20,500
Today we're going to be talking about aging in our latter years. And I am in my latter years.

20
00:02:20,500 --> 00:02:28,500
I'm a boomer. And our guest is also a boomer. And he's written a book. He's an author. He's a speaker.

21
00:02:28,500 --> 00:02:36,500
And he's all about conscious elderly, elderly, but that's a big word Ron. That is a huge word.

22
00:02:36,500 --> 00:02:47,500
But we're going to talk about that. And our guest is Ron Pevney. And he is an author of the book, conscious living, conscious aging,

23
00:02:47,500 --> 00:02:52,500
claiming the gifts of elderhood. Ron, welcome to aging today.

24
00:02:52,500 --> 00:02:54,500
Thank you, Mark. Thank you.

25
00:02:54,500 --> 00:03:03,500
Yeah. I'm so excited about your book because I did get a chance to read it. And it was being a boomer.

26
00:03:03,500 --> 00:03:14,500
I mean, who wouldn't resonate with this book? I mean, I want to get into, you know, some of the specifics of your motivations for writing it.

27
00:03:14,500 --> 00:03:23,500
And we'll get into all of that. But before we do that, we always start out our segments with what's in your story, not so much Ron.

28
00:03:23,500 --> 00:03:28,500
What's in your wallet? But if you've got a lot, you can feel free to share with me.

29
00:03:28,500 --> 00:03:47,500
But we want to know what's in your story. What led you to be an author? What led you to be, you know, an author with so much wisdom and experience to write down for the rest of us a plan for moving forward?

30
00:03:47,500 --> 00:03:57,500
Well, Mark, I think the relevant parts of my story began about, oh, about 40 years ago.

31
00:03:57,500 --> 00:04:06,500
And at that point, I had just completed my graduate education at the California Institute of Integral Studies in East West Counseling Psychology.

32
00:04:06,500 --> 00:04:18,500
And frankly, I did not have any idea what felt right to me in terms of how I was going to give my gifts, make a difference in the world, find fulfillment.

33
00:04:18,500 --> 00:04:38,500
And in a rather dark night of the soul that happened for me at that time, I got together a couple of friends and we went and we engaged in, I guess you would say an unofficial vision, vision quest up at Mount Shasta in California.

34
00:04:38,500 --> 00:04:50,500
I knew a little bit about vision questing not much, but we went there, we spent time on the land, just opening ourselves to guidance and to clarity about what's next for all of us.

35
00:04:50,500 --> 00:05:05,500
And I had one of those ineffable experiences there that where I knew beyond any shadow of a doubt that my work was to help people in moving through life transitions.

36
00:05:05,500 --> 00:05:13,500
Yeah, especially people who were at a point like myself where I just felt really lost, I didn't know where I was headed, I felt I was in between.

37
00:05:13,500 --> 00:05:22,500
And so way back when in the late, very late 70s, I became one of the first guides of wilderness rights of passage experiences.

38
00:05:22,500 --> 00:05:34,500
I found mentors who were incredible teachers to me and I began doing this work. And it was my primary work for a bunch of years, 25 years or so.

39
00:05:34,500 --> 00:05:44,500
I had to do some other things to make a living at times, but this is the work of my heart where my gifts came through the best where I was most alive.

40
00:05:44,500 --> 00:06:04,500
And I did that until around the year 2000 and around the year 2000, I found myself thinking a lot about, you know, what people are really in need of support in moving through transition where there seems to be nothing available for them.

41
00:06:04,500 --> 00:06:21,500
Right of passages of any kind, almost nothing. And then I realized that it was people who were reaching retirement age and who were in what really seemed to be a huge transition for whatever comes after retirement.

42
00:06:21,500 --> 00:06:32,500
And about that same time as synchronicity would have it, I heard from two wise elders, 15 years older than me because I was just in my early 50s at the time.

43
00:06:32,500 --> 00:06:46,500
And I said, Ron, we want to create some kind of a right of passage for moving into elderhood. Would you join us? And I said, well, I'm not an elder and I don't have the wisdom you have, they were the wise elders. And they said, that's okay.

44
00:06:46,500 --> 00:06:59,500
You know, a lot about transition and rights of passage. We'd like you to join us. And that began this, you know, 25 years of work that I've been so committed to now.

45
00:06:59,500 --> 00:07:23,500
I was, I watched people use these experiences we created to truly find meaning and purpose as they were moving into a new chapter. I got excited by it. I got gradually older and finally began to realize that I was no longer unqualified that I was, you know, entering my early elderhood myself. And this is the work.

46
00:07:23,500 --> 00:07:42,500
I really wanted and needed to do it was the expression of my sense of calling for this point in my life. And so here I am. And as I did this work for several years, I realized that I've got some things to share that could reach a whole lot more people than 10 or 15 people on a wilderness retreat.

47
00:07:42,500 --> 00:07:45,500
And that I should put it in a, in a book.

48
00:07:45,500 --> 00:07:59,500
So I wrote my book, conscious living, conscious aging and it came out in 2014. And I've continued to do this work, hopefully gotten a little bit wiser, have grown, have learned.

49
00:07:59,500 --> 00:08:09,500
And I realized last year that I have a lot more to say that I think needed to go into into a new addition and expanded updated edition of my book.

50
00:08:09,500 --> 00:08:27,500
My publisher agreed and so this new addition came out about a month ago or so. And so here I am an author with wonderful opportunity to have lots of conversations with people like yourself to share what I know with, with people who really are open to learning.

51
00:08:27,500 --> 00:08:33,500
And I find it very fulfilling to be able to talk about my work in this way. So thank you for the opportunity.

52
00:08:33,500 --> 00:08:47,500
Yeah, no problem. Well, and, and the reason why I do these podcasts is because I get to meet incredible people like yourself. And one of my favorite Hebrew words is, "Hachma."

53
00:08:47,500 --> 00:09:13,500
And "Hachma" literally is translated into wisdom and wisdom is translated into living life skillfully. And isn't that what we all want to do is when we see somebody and we see somebody that is an elder, many times not always, but many times those are the people that have learned to live life skillfully, whatever capacity that they're living.

54
00:09:13,500 --> 00:09:33,500
I'm very excited to dive into your book, conscious living and conscious aging and picking apart the pieces to glean some own, some of my own wisdom and skill in how I can live my best life possible at this stage of my life.

55
00:09:33,500 --> 00:09:47,500
I'm 66, Ron. I'm right there and I know many of our listening audience are those boomers out there and, and you know, retirement is one of those funny things, isn't it?

56
00:09:47,500 --> 00:09:57,500
It's, it's, we look forward to it to some extent and then we don't know what to do with it when we get there.

57
00:09:57,500 --> 00:10:21,500
Many people mark for many years in many cases are thinking about what they're going to retire from, what they're going to retire from, thinking about it years and years in advance and then when it comes, all of a sudden they are hit with the realization that I haven't given much thought, I don't have any sense of what I'm retiring to.

58
00:10:21,500 --> 00:10:41,500
And that can be a big, big dark hole for a lot of people and I think my work is very much about helping people to begin before they retire to envision what's going to give them purpose and meaning after they retire.

59
00:10:41,500 --> 00:10:49,500
Because so many of us as we know our identity in our sense of purpose is tied to our work or our careers.

60
00:10:49,500 --> 00:10:50,500
Yeah.

61
00:10:50,500 --> 00:11:05,500
But if we're in a position where we have let go of those are very well-being, you know, study after study shows that are mental and are physical and are emotional and spiritual well-being depends upon having a strong sense of purpose.

62
00:11:05,500 --> 00:11:18,500
And so we need to be finding purpose and if we haven't already found it by the time we retire, we retire, there are many things we can do to help us get in touch with the sense of purpose and meaning in our lives and in our, in our elderhood.

63
00:11:18,500 --> 00:11:19,500
Yeah.

64
00:11:19,500 --> 00:11:22,500
And let's start with those two words, purpose and meaning.

65
00:11:22,500 --> 00:11:24,500
What is purpose?

66
00:11:24,500 --> 00:11:36,500
I mean, what is the aim in understanding and finding our purpose in life and then what is the aim in meaning to meaning?

67
00:11:36,500 --> 00:11:39,500
What is it that we're looking for in our lives?

68
00:11:39,500 --> 00:11:40,500
Yeah.

69
00:11:40,500 --> 00:11:45,500
And I think often those two terms have a lot in common with each other.

70
00:11:45,500 --> 00:11:48,500
I don't see them as being worlds apart.

71
00:11:48,500 --> 00:11:58,500
You know, we human beings are gifted with a lot of energy.

72
00:11:58,500 --> 00:12:06,500
We're gifted with the ability to look toward the future, to try to envision what our life can be like.

73
00:12:06,500 --> 00:12:14,500
And I think we are built so that this energy that we're gifted with has to find expression.

74
00:12:14,500 --> 00:12:24,500
If it just sits there without expression, this energy can begin to, it can begin to unravel us.

75
00:12:24,500 --> 00:12:27,500
It certainly doesn't help us physically or emotionally.

76
00:12:27,500 --> 00:12:43,500
And the kind of expression that is most helpful and most life-giving for people is expression where what we're doing is for something bigger than just what we're doing.

77
00:12:43,500 --> 00:12:48,500
It's bigger than just our own entertainment or our own security.

78
00:12:48,500 --> 00:12:59,500
It's a sense of purpose of making a difference in the world somehow, of somehow giving who we are and giving the gift of our energy to the world around us.

79
00:12:59,500 --> 00:13:01,500
And I think that's what purpose is.

80
00:13:01,500 --> 00:13:12,500
It's finding our way for a particular point in life of giving our gifts and of channeling our energy for the well-being of the world around us.

81
00:13:12,500 --> 00:13:15,500
And for our own well-being.

82
00:13:15,500 --> 00:13:18,500
And where to, yeah, it does a little bit.

83
00:13:18,500 --> 00:13:24,500
I think that purpose is what is it that drives me to get out of bed in the morning?

84
00:13:24,500 --> 00:13:26,500
You know, it gives you to have some kind of a purpose.

85
00:13:26,500 --> 00:13:30,500
But the meaning is something that is even deeper than that.

86
00:13:30,500 --> 00:13:32,500
Is that how you see it?

87
00:13:32,500 --> 00:13:34,500
Yeah.

88
00:13:34,500 --> 00:14:02,500
And I think that the meaning is how this particular for me, meaning is how our particular purpose at a given time or a sense of purpose fits into the larger picture of how we view and understand our lives and our progression through life and our growth.

89
00:14:02,500 --> 00:14:20,500
And so much of what I believe that conscious eldering, or it's oftentimes conscious aging is about, is seeing our life as not just a series of random events that have happened and we've responded to them, you know, in positive ways or maybe not so positive.

90
00:14:20,500 --> 00:14:28,500
But rather seeing that there is some kind of almost a story that wants to unfold through each of our lives.

91
00:14:28,500 --> 00:14:29,500
Yeah.

92
00:14:29,500 --> 00:14:32,500
And it's not just a bunch of random events.

93
00:14:32,500 --> 00:14:48,500
And the more we can get in touch with this unfolding story of growth, then the more we're able to see the events of our life up to now and the events of our life moving forward as fitting into some kind of a bigger picture.

94
00:14:48,500 --> 00:14:52,500
And that bigger picture for me is how I understand the meaning.

95
00:14:52,500 --> 00:14:53,500
Yeah.

96
00:14:53,500 --> 00:15:07,500
And I think that we all have a purpose for living on this earth and we all have, we all want to derive the meaning because that's what makes us unique as human beings is that we have that consciousness.

97
00:15:07,500 --> 00:15:09,500
We have that ability to do that.

98
00:15:09,500 --> 00:15:21,500
And I love, you know, the title of even the title of your book, conscious living, conscious aging, meaning that you have to, I'm assuming that when you use the word conscious,

99
00:15:21,500 --> 00:15:29,500
you're talking about being aware and being involved, being engaged, having an aim.

100
00:15:29,500 --> 00:15:34,500
And I look at where we are in this world today.

101
00:15:34,500 --> 00:15:42,500
And I see so many people wandering around aimlessly and they've taken, they just don't have a purpose.

102
00:15:42,500 --> 00:15:53,500
They don't have a reason for, and moving in the direction that they're moving. Do you see it the similar ways or differently?

103
00:15:53,500 --> 00:16:00,500
Oh no, I definitely see that. And I think that's one of the main motivations for me in doing this work.

104
00:16:00,500 --> 00:16:03,500
And, you know, I'm 76.

105
00:16:03,500 --> 00:16:25,500
A lot of people say, well, Ron, you know, why haven't you retired? But I think one reason I continue to do this work is that I look around me and I see so many people who have so many gifts and they have so much potential, who are adrift,

106
00:16:25,500 --> 00:16:41,500
who don't seem to have any direction, who feel irrelevant and isolated. And frankly, it kind of breaks my heart because I see what's possible.

107
00:16:41,500 --> 00:16:51,500
I see what can happen when we choose to live with purpose, to live for something bigger than ourselves in these years as we're aging.

108
00:16:51,500 --> 00:17:00,500
I see how it brings people to life and I want to support people in coming to life. That's just who I am. It's so important to me.

109
00:17:00,500 --> 00:17:03,500
And that's why I keep doing this work.

110
00:17:03,500 --> 00:17:05,500
Doing the writing I do.

111
00:17:05,500 --> 00:17:09,500
And that's why I continue to do what we're doing as well.

112
00:17:09,500 --> 00:17:29,500
I mean, we own an in-home care agency, we own a hospice agency and we have this podcast and I use the podcast as a way to, you know, is the horn that to be able to, you know, shout from the mountaintops to tell people to inspire people to get people to look upwards to be in.

113
00:17:29,500 --> 00:17:49,500
And so many people are looking downward. They're, they've given up and they've, and I just, I don't want, especially when you retire, there just seems to be in a pattern in some people's lives that retirement means they've given up.

114
00:17:49,500 --> 00:18:02,500
And now they're just going to sit around the house and watch TV, but that only lasts for so long. And then they lose that sense of purpose. They lose that sense of meaning to life.

115
00:18:02,500 --> 00:18:06,500
And I think we, I think we can do better than that.

116
00:18:06,500 --> 00:18:20,500
And I appreciate your book because it's inspiring to lift people's eyes upward to, to do better and to find the purpose in the meaning because your purpose in meaning is different than mine.

117
00:18:20,500 --> 00:18:24,500
And, and vice versa out there.

118
00:18:24,500 --> 00:18:30,500
And I think each individual has to have that responsibility to take that upon themselves.

119
00:18:30,500 --> 00:18:55,500
And Mark, I think that one primary reason that so many people seem to just be adrift as you're talking about after retirement age is that the world we live in doesn't present any kind of a model for people of what truly healthy aging can be.

120
00:18:55,500 --> 00:19:06,500
And, you know, I think that current society doesn't know what to do with older people. Most of the time when you hear them talked about in the news, it's not for the contributions that they're making.

121
00:19:06,500 --> 00:19:12,500
But it's for the fact that how are they, how are we going to keep Medicare and Social Security going?

122
00:19:12,500 --> 00:19:16,500
And yet we might bankrupt the government in doing so. I mean, that's the context.

123
00:19:16,500 --> 00:19:31,500
And so if, if you don't have a vision for what true elderhood can be and most societies throughout history up until a couple hundred years ago had a clear vision for people to aspire to.

124
00:19:31,500 --> 00:19:36,500
If you don't have a vision, then people think, well, this is the best I can hope for.

125
00:19:36,500 --> 00:19:51,500
Is that where you come in with the word conscious in your title in the book and having that awareness? You know, people just need to take that responsibility to be conscious and aware.

126
00:19:51,500 --> 00:20:01,500
Yeah, yeah. And I think that to me, the word conscious really does mean aware.

127
00:20:01,500 --> 00:20:10,500
But it means aware of several different kinds of things that I'll speak out for just a couple moments now.

128
00:20:10,500 --> 00:20:23,500
Becoming more conscious is becoming increasingly aware of what is our own unique inner voice. What is our own unique truth?

129
00:20:23,500 --> 00:20:38,500
What are our own unique aspirations as opposed to the many voices in each of us, you know, from our parents and from our society and from the world around us telling us what's important, what's possible, what to aspire to?

130
00:20:38,500 --> 00:20:41,500
So it's becoming more aware of our own voice.

131
00:20:41,500 --> 00:21:04,500
And becoming more conscious means becoming increasingly aware of all those what are often called shadow elements in ourselves. Those areas where we're wounded or we're not integrated or we're carrying around a lot of old baggage that we've all accumulated throughout our lives that sap our energy.

132
00:21:04,500 --> 00:21:13,500
And as we age, we're not going to have the energy there to support any positive aspirations we might have.

133
00:21:13,500 --> 00:21:29,500
So it's becoming more aware of that to me becoming increasingly conscious is becoming more aware of the reality that you and I and all of us are part of a very, very interconnected, interdependent world.

134
00:21:29,500 --> 00:21:46,500
My well-being and your well-being depends upon seeing how we can help to support the well-being of the larger whole, giving our gifts to help support the well-being of the larger whole because we can't be healthy if the larger whole is not healthy.

135
00:21:46,500 --> 00:21:50,500
And so that's part of what becoming more conscious is.

136
00:21:50,500 --> 00:22:04,500
To me becoming more conscious means becoming increasingly aware of when we are living out of habit as most of us tend to do and by the time we get to our 60s and 70s, we've developed a lot of habits.

137
00:22:04,500 --> 00:22:11,500
And if we're just living out of habit, then we're not even consciously aware of what we're doing.

138
00:22:11,500 --> 00:22:31,500
And we're kind of automaton just kind of operating through old habits. So becoming aware of when we're living out of habit so we can begin to make more conscious choices of how we're going to live, what we're going to aim for, what attitudes we're going to have, how we're going to react to things.

139
00:22:31,500 --> 00:22:55,500
And I think this is central to conscious eltering. Conscious to me means becoming increasingly aware that we are not just our personalities and our egos doing whatever we do, but that there is some kind of an essence in us, call it whatever you will, but something that is deeper than just our personality selves.

140
00:22:55,500 --> 00:23:21,500
We call it spirit, some call it soul, some call it the inner self, it doesn't matter what you call it, but there's something else there. And that is the source of our, if we, if we are willing to and we learn how to tap into it, that's the source of our guidance, the source of our healing, the source of our purpose, the source of our resilience, as we move into these elder years, which can be so very challenging.

141
00:23:21,500 --> 00:23:28,500
Conscious to me involves all of those different aspects that I just spoke of, Mark.

142
00:23:28,500 --> 00:23:43,500
Yeah, yeah. And you know, when, when you put on these seminars, they're, they're in Colorado, is that correct? Or do you go all over the world to put these on?

143
00:23:43,500 --> 00:23:55,500
Well, we don't do a ton of them. We do maybe three or four a year. The place where we have done the most is beautiful ghost ranch in New Mexico. Some of your listeners may know about that incredible place there.

144
00:23:55,500 --> 00:24:06,500
And then, you know, I'm going to do one in Ireland. We occasionally do one on the east coast or one in Canada, but we don't do a lot. We maybe do three or four a year.

145
00:24:06,500 --> 00:24:21,500
There are week-long retreats, we call them choosing conscious elderhood. Yeah. And, and so what, what is the aim for those retreats? And then is what's in those retreats? Is it in your book?

146
00:24:21,500 --> 00:24:32,500
So if somebody wanted to learn more about the retreats, but couldn't, you know, get to the, the actual physical retreat, they can get it in the book. Is, is that how it works?

147
00:24:32,500 --> 00:24:44,500
Yeah, yeah. The purpose of the retreats, Mark, is to give people an intensive week-long experience and beautiful natural places open our hearts and minds.

148
00:24:44,500 --> 00:24:59,500
You know, we don't do these in some church basement or something. We do in places that inspire us. And the purpose is to help people become aware of the possibilities of aging consciously.

149
00:24:59,500 --> 00:25:10,500
To help them articulate and become very aware and to share in the group, and we have small groups of 13 or 14, the many challenges that come with aging.

150
00:25:10,500 --> 00:25:21,500
And to present a lot of different tools and understandings that can help people then take this awareness of the possibilities and actually incorporate that into their lives.

151
00:25:21,500 --> 00:25:33,500
So that when they leave, they don't just have a bunch of concepts, but they've had a strong experience that hopefully can help to inform the choices they make in the way they live moving forward.

152
00:25:33,500 --> 00:25:48,500
Along the way I was told by various people and I became aware that the way our retreat is structured, is structured in such a way that I could write a book that in many ways follows the unfolding of one of our retreats.

153
00:25:48,500 --> 00:26:07,500
You know, the chapters follow the unfolding of the themes in a retreat. And people tell me that I've done a really good job of doing that and that if people do read my book, and it's not a pagejourner like you read in an airport, it's one of those books that you're really reflective about.

154
00:26:07,500 --> 00:26:19,500
If you do that, you do some of the exercises in there that you could end up really gaining a lot of what you might gain if you are one of those who's able to participate in a retreat.

155
00:26:19,500 --> 00:26:30,500
And so a lot of ways I view it as a, you can do a personal retreat with my book if you spend some time and effort and do it really mindfully.

156
00:26:30,500 --> 00:26:48,500
Yeah, and that's kind of where I came away with it is as I was reading through your book, I was, you know, envisioning myself in a natural setting and envisioning, you know, the principles that you were talking about and applying them into my own self.

157
00:26:48,500 --> 00:26:58,500
And that's that's a beauty of a book. You got to love that. And that that's a reflection of the author and the writing style in your writing style is so easy to read and very.

158
00:26:58,500 --> 00:27:03,500
And it's about story. And it comes out very clear.

159
00:27:03,500 --> 00:27:10,500
Did you know that you can find renewed passion and fulfillment in your life as you age?

160
00:27:10,500 --> 00:27:24,500
Conscious elderly expert Ron Pévney shares how in the 10th anniversary edition of his book, conscious living, conscious aging, conscious aging means much more than just becoming a bit more conscious as we age.

161
00:27:24,500 --> 00:27:33,500
It's about embracing a new role in your community, serving and savoring our wellbeing and remaining engaged in the possibilities to come.

162
00:27:33,500 --> 00:27:39,500
Conscious living, conscious aging available at all major retailers.

163
00:27:39,500 --> 00:27:45,500
This did you know moment was provided by today's guest and is brought to you by Royal Hospice of Oregon.

164
00:27:45,500 --> 00:28:04,500
I wanted to ask you a question about aging and what is it that you're learning as a boomer about aging as opposed to what you experienced with what your parents went through through the aging and how's that different?

165
00:28:04,500 --> 00:28:14,500
What did you learn from them? Because I think, you know, you've used and I do want you to define the term elder because I think that that's a word that needs to be reinstate.

166
00:28:14,500 --> 00:28:21,500
And we reinstate it in our culture and with that comes a lot of respect.

167
00:28:21,500 --> 00:28:38,500
So if you could pick up on how you view aging as a boomer, how you saw it with your parents because we're various, you know, we're similar backgrounds and then picking up on the whole elder concept.

168
00:28:38,500 --> 00:28:52,500
My parents were of the generation where 66 or 70 was really, really considered old and they acted old.

169
00:28:52,500 --> 00:29:07,500
It's like my dad retired, I think at the age of 65, which was the norm and pretty much all he aspired to was, I hate this word was puttering around the house.

170
00:29:07,500 --> 00:29:31,500
And doing some fishing and same with my mother, they didn't have any kind of a concept that life after retirement could be something other than just kind of biting your time and trying to get what pleasure you could even as you experience the natural breakdowns of your body and stuff.

171
00:29:31,500 --> 00:29:42,500
I contrast that with the world now where so much is changing and thank goodness there are so many models out there.

172
00:29:42,500 --> 00:29:51,500
You know, they have names like successful aging, positive aging, skillful aging, healthy aging, you know, your audience has probably heard a whole bunch of them.

173
00:29:51,500 --> 00:30:00,500
There's conscious aging and conscious sheltering, but there are a lot of models that help people see that just because we've reached retirement age doesn't mean we.

174
00:30:00,500 --> 00:30:07,500
We have to stop being active. We can be doing things. We can be volunteering in the community. We can be doing.

175
00:30:07,500 --> 00:30:14,500
We can live much longer than ever before because we know so much more about healthy lifestyles and what makes for a healthy lifestyle.

176
00:30:14,500 --> 00:30:24,500
So a lot of really positive, positive changes are happening now, you know, I think most people upon retirement age aspired to more than just puttering.

177
00:30:24,500 --> 00:30:31,500
And not to kind of move to your to your, the point you make about eldering because I think it naturally flows from this.

178
00:30:31,500 --> 00:30:53,500
I think what's missing from a whole lot of what we're seeing around us in the society now that is a more positive vision of aging is some focus on the importance and the potential of personal and emotional and spiritual growth in our later years.

179
00:30:53,500 --> 00:31:15,500
And I think what conscious eldering does is it, it tries to point out the people that there is indeed a possibility of growing into a true elderhood, bringing forth those qualities that have throughout history defined those honored by their society as elders.

180
00:31:15,500 --> 00:31:28,500
It's a possibility of growing into that and that adds a whole new dimension because that's about who you can be as you age and not just about what you can do.

181
00:31:28,500 --> 00:31:42,500
And to me, the ideal is to to to really recognize that this is a time when I can grow in wonderful ways inwardly and spiritually and I can be active.

182
00:31:42,500 --> 00:31:56,500
And I can hopefully be of service to the world around me because elders have always throughout history been recognized as those who have as they have grown old have grown.

183
00:31:56,500 --> 00:32:06,500
They just haven't aged they have grown inwardly and out of that growth, then they are able to contribute to the well being of the world around them.

184
00:32:06,500 --> 00:32:12,500
And that's the kind of elderhood that my work tries the best I can to support.

185
00:32:12,500 --> 00:32:21,500
Yeah. And in the subtitle of your book, it's claiming the gifts of elderhood. Is that what you're referring to as the gifts?

186
00:32:21,500 --> 00:32:35,500
Yes, yes, I really, I truly believe in those that I've been honored to have as mentors, have believed and taught that our elder years can be a lot more positive.

187
00:32:35,500 --> 00:32:50,500
Elder years can be the pinnacle of our emotional and our spiritual growth even as we inevitably decline physically and we suffer losses and diminishings.

188
00:32:50,500 --> 00:33:04,500
What a gift to be able to believe and then work toward growing inwardly because just imagine if you're totally identified Mark with the things you can do.

189
00:33:04,500 --> 00:33:16,500
And I think a lot of older people I know are and a lot of people 75 80 you can do lots of stuff but what happens when the point comes when you can't do it anymore.

190
00:33:16,500 --> 00:33:29,500
Then either you are left in a big deep hole of depression and loss or if you have done some inner growth spiritually and emotionally you see that there's a rich inner life.

191
00:33:29,500 --> 00:33:38,500
And rich contributions you can make just in smaller ways by virtue of who you are to the world around you.

192
00:33:38,500 --> 00:33:49,500
It's easier to find purpose and meaning if you have grown into elderhood then if that is something that you don't know about or you have not aspired to at all.

193
00:33:49,500 --> 00:34:14,500
How do you see yourself along the journey of conscious elderhood? How have you grown in that journey because we are all at different places and you're at a very intense level than the rest of us obviously because you're the author you're the creator of this but where you at.

194
00:34:14,500 --> 00:34:21,500
You know where I'm at mark is that I see what's possible.

195
00:34:21,500 --> 00:34:26,500
I've had so many mentors and models who have shown me what's possible.

196
00:34:26,500 --> 00:34:34,500
I have a lot of days when I begin to feel that I am really growing into the best of what elderhood can be.

197
00:34:34,500 --> 00:34:46,500
And I have a lot of days when I see I have quite a waste to go before I truly fulfill my aspirations. I am not there. Maybe I never I never will be there.

198
00:34:46,500 --> 00:34:58,500
I think be more specific. I think a couple of the big things that I have learned relate to finding a balance between being out there in the world contributing.

199
00:34:58,500 --> 00:35:07,500
And I imagine you and your listeners get some sense from hearing me that I have a strong need and sense of calling to contribute.

200
00:35:07,500 --> 00:35:17,500
But 15 20 years ago I was pushing. I was pushing really hard. It was me struggling. It was me living very much out of balance.

201
00:35:17,500 --> 00:35:28,500
I didn't feel I was taking care of my inner life. I wasn't savoring life very much because I was so having to accomplish certain things.

202
00:35:28,500 --> 00:35:39,500
And at this point now my work is still very important. But I'm recognizing I need to give myself space to not just be serving but to be savoring.

203
00:35:39,500 --> 00:35:55,500
And so I try to spend more time just being quiet and enjoying the small things and I've got two granddaughters and enjoying my granddaughters and enjoying nature and being meditative and deepening my own spirituality.

204
00:35:55,500 --> 00:36:09,500
There's a part of me that forever has yearned to be a monastic. And that call is still there. And so I'm trying to find ways in the context of my life to give myself a little bit of that kind of monastic kind of experience.

205
00:36:09,500 --> 00:36:18,500
And so I'm fine. And you know the interesting thing is I'm finding that I'm doing less than I would have done 10 or 15 years ago, Mark.

206
00:36:18,500 --> 00:36:32,500
But since I'm doing it more from a sense of balance that I feel and I accomplish more with what I do. I'm not pushing so hard but I'm trusting something bigger than me to kind of be working with me and supporting me.

207
00:36:32,500 --> 00:36:45,500
And that's maybe the biggest change that I could point to right now. I trusted it's not just me. There's something else that that shows up in the world with me and supports me.

208
00:36:45,500 --> 00:37:08,500
Yeah. And when you use that word monastic, you're using it from a spiritual basis. Is that where you're coming from? Yeah. What I mean when I'm meaning I'm meaning that there is a part of me that very, very much wants retreat time, meditative time.

209
00:37:08,500 --> 00:37:22,500
The kind of things you would do if you went to a monastery of some sort or other a part of me that year is for more of that. And one of my commitments that I've got a list of my intentions for these years ahead.

210
00:37:22,500 --> 00:37:40,500
And one of those strong, strong intentions for me is that I want to create a life in the time I have left or every year I give myself at least a month, either in one chunk or in smaller pieces where I can just go off on retreat.

211
00:37:40,500 --> 00:37:51,500
And just look at my life and look at my spirituality and just focus within and not put any of my energy outwardly into my work. That feels really important.

212
00:37:51,500 --> 00:38:07,500
In your travels as you meet people along the way along because you're living, you're walking this journey. And as you draw alongside of other people that are walking down this path as well.

213
00:38:07,500 --> 00:38:27,500
What are some of the things that you've learned from them about conscious living, conscious aging? What are some of their fears that you've been able to listen to as they tell their story?

214
00:38:27,500 --> 00:38:47,500
I've been privileged to guide quite a few people on these retreats. And I have to acknowledge that it's a very self-selected group who's willing to devote a week of their lives and the resources and everything to come on a retreat.

215
00:38:47,500 --> 00:39:06,500
So I don't know if they represent just the average Jo and Jill, but among the kind of people who come on our retreats and I have the most conversations with probably the number one fear or concern is losing their mental abilities.

216
00:39:06,500 --> 00:39:12,500
That is very, very frightening to a lot of people, you know, Alzheimer's and dementia is very frightening.

217
00:39:12,500 --> 00:39:22,500
I think the fear of getting some kind of a chronic disease that you know, saps their energy and their strength and their joy is a big one.

218
00:39:22,500 --> 00:39:39,500
Other than those two, the thing I hear the most often, I think the reason people give for coming on these retreats is that they really, really fear and dread your relevance.

219
00:39:39,500 --> 00:39:51,500
And they may be used to be relevant during their careers, but now oftentimes they feel irrelevant, they feel isolated, they feel invisible, the three eyes.

220
00:39:51,500 --> 00:39:54,500
And they hate that. They don't want that.

221
00:39:54,500 --> 00:40:08,500
And they've said something else is possible, but they don't know what that is. And so some almost out of desperation learn about something like one of my retreats or some of them, any other good things that are happening out there to support people who are aging.

222
00:40:08,500 --> 00:40:20,500
They learn about this hoping that they can leave with some understanding of how they their life can be relevant in what can be 20, 25 years after retirement.

223
00:40:20,500 --> 00:40:23,500
That's a big fear for many people.

224
00:40:23,500 --> 00:40:34,500
Yeah, one of the things I was thinking as you were just describing that is, being an elder gives you a sense of depth and breadth to life.

225
00:40:34,500 --> 00:40:44,500
And when we're younger, we're so busy with the hurry, the day, the tyranny of the urgent, I call it, and we're like a raging river.

226
00:40:44,500 --> 00:40:48,500
And we don't take the time to stop and reflect.

227
00:40:48,500 --> 00:40:57,500
And the beauty of being at this place in life, I'm loving it because it's helped me to be more reflective.

228
00:40:57,500 --> 00:41:06,500
And upon that reflection, I'm taking more time to care for myself than I ever have.

229
00:41:06,500 --> 00:41:08,500
Beautiful, beautiful.

230
00:41:08,500 --> 00:41:12,500
And you know, that's possible for so many people.

231
00:41:12,500 --> 00:41:24,500
You know, I honor anybody who has lived a long time and suffered the many slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, you know, and made it to a good long life.

232
00:41:24,500 --> 00:41:27,500
I honor them all.

233
00:41:27,500 --> 00:41:41,500
But to my mind, the term elder is reserved for people who have really chosen to grow into this life stage that I call elderhood.

234
00:41:41,500 --> 00:41:50,500
You know, a stage where they're committed to growth, they're committed to service, they're committed to doing the kind of work we call the inner work of conscious,

235
00:41:50,500 --> 00:41:57,500
conscious, elder, where you take a look at your life and you heal, you heal those things from the past that need to be healed.

236
00:41:57,500 --> 00:42:08,500
And you get really in touch with what, what are the deepest, your, truest yearnings of my heart that I'm going to aspire to that can make a difference for me and for the world around me.

237
00:42:08,500 --> 00:42:15,500
That's a whole state of being that those are the ones that I, I honor with the term elder.

238
00:42:15,500 --> 00:42:17,500
So I just wanted to clarify that.

239
00:42:17,500 --> 00:42:27,500
And that's why I say I think there's a difference between growing older, just merely growing older and growing elder.

240
00:42:27,500 --> 00:42:30,500
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense right there.

241
00:42:30,500 --> 00:42:34,500
Yeah, well said, well said.

242
00:42:34,500 --> 00:42:44,500
You talk about in your book the four influencers, people that have made a difference in your life that have influenced you along the way.

243
00:42:44,500 --> 00:42:55,500
Can you describe a little bit more about those four influencers and I think the first one that I wrote this down because I wanted to learn more about these influences.

244
00:42:55,500 --> 00:43:08,500
These are the universal dynamics of the life transition and that's something that I wanted to bring some more clarity to from your perspective.

245
00:43:08,500 --> 00:43:15,500
And we'll start with that one, the first one.

246
00:43:15,500 --> 00:43:36,500
One thing that society throughout history have understood that we have lost track of in our modern industrial society is that humans don't just move through life.

247
00:43:36,500 --> 00:43:41,500
You know, moving on some kind of a straight continuum.

248
00:43:41,500 --> 00:43:49,500
But rather they grow and they change as a result of major transitions in life.

249
00:43:49,500 --> 00:43:58,500
And for, you know, they're, they're various particular transitions that, you know, you've experienced that are different than the ones I've experienced, Mark.

250
00:43:58,500 --> 00:44:08,500
And there's some that are predictable that we all experience and those are major transitions at certain points in life, the transition from youth into adulthood.

251
00:44:08,500 --> 00:44:19,500
You know, the transition from adulthood in mid life crisis really is a time of transition for many people.

252
00:44:19,500 --> 00:44:27,500
And then there, you know, there's the huge transition from mid life adulthood into this whole life stage called elderhood.

253
00:44:27,500 --> 00:44:39,500
These transitions of necessity require that we let go of some sense of who we have been up to that point.

254
00:44:39,500 --> 00:44:49,500
We review our lives carefully, but we let go of some sense of who we have been that won't serve us moving forward.

255
00:44:49,500 --> 00:45:01,500
And then we enter an in-between place where we really don't know who we are. We can feel lost and adrift, but it's a natural place because that's where the seeds of new beginnings start to gestate.

256
00:45:01,500 --> 00:45:07,500
And then gradually we'll start to move into the new chapter of our life, the new beginning, the new stage.

257
00:45:07,500 --> 00:45:10,500
And that's the process of transition.

258
00:45:10,500 --> 00:45:31,500
And for people, you know, going through this big transition from mid life adulthood into elderhood, understanding this, and understanding their certain dynamics, we have to acknowledge, including the need to let go, and to honor that in-between space before we try to go frantically jumping into something else,

259
00:45:31,500 --> 00:45:45,500
but that's really important in our growth, and gradually a new chapter will begin if we honor this whole process. But first we have to understand it, and things like my book help people to gain some understanding of the process.

260
00:45:45,500 --> 00:45:54,500
Yeah, one of the principles of my life has always been the mark of a smart man is not that he knows everything, but he knows where to find out about everything.

261
00:45:54,500 --> 00:46:18,500
So the second influencer in your life was a rabbi, or was there several rabbis? And I wanted you to talk about the wisdom, because I love the word wisdom and rabbi together, because remember my definition of wisdom is that comes from the Hebrew word, huckma, and it literally means living life skillfully.

262
00:46:18,500 --> 00:46:30,500
So the point that I think you're trying to make here is that if you really want to be successful in life, surround yourself with successful people.

263
00:46:30,500 --> 00:46:44,500
That's right. And if you really want to see what's possible in human growth and development, find people who really seem to model the best of what's possible.

264
00:46:44,500 --> 00:47:02,500
And one of those big influences for me was rabbi's almond shakr shalomi. Now I'm not Jewish myself, but rabbi's almond shakr shalomi was one of these incredibly progressive thinkers who recognized the wisdom in all the world's traditions.

265
00:47:02,500 --> 00:47:14,500
And he along with Ramdass, who many of your listeners may be familiar with, a very well-known spiritual teacher for the last 40 years who died a few years ago.

266
00:47:14,500 --> 00:47:20,500
He and Ramdass and others ended up coming up with the whole concept of conscious aging.

267
00:47:20,500 --> 00:47:31,500
And then rabbi's almond shakr shalomi wrote the seminal book, I think, about conscious aging, and it's called from aging to saging.

268
00:47:31,500 --> 00:47:46,500
And he's a most incredible model because so many of his understandings came from understanding the growth traditions around the world and weaving them together in a model that he called saging.

269
00:47:46,500 --> 00:47:55,500
And in many ways, my work draws on that, but it also draws very, very heavily from my strong understandings of the right of passage tradition.

270
00:47:55,500 --> 00:48:12,500
And in many people, he was the premiere model and his work lives on in the form of an organization called saging international that your listeners might want to check out because they're a wealth of wonderful resources and their website.

271
00:48:12,500 --> 00:48:16,500
Saging international is the name of the organization.

272
00:48:16,500 --> 00:48:30,500
So principle number one, the influencers in your life that has helped you to understand conscious living, conscious aging has been understanding the universal dynamics of life transitions.

273
00:48:30,500 --> 00:48:36,500
And then surrounding yourself with more brilliant people than yourself, like rabbi, the rabbi that you were referring to.

274
00:48:36,500 --> 00:48:45,500
I'm not Jewish either, but it doesn't matter, you know, what your spiritual influence is.

275
00:48:45,500 --> 00:48:57,500
There's spiritual influencers all around us and there's nuggets of truth nuggets that we all shouldn't be embracing because all truth is God's truth.

276
00:48:57,500 --> 00:49:00,500
That's right. And we all need models.

277
00:49:00,500 --> 00:49:01,500
Yeah.

278
00:49:01,500 --> 00:49:13,500
And I think when you live in a society that doesn't have any kind of an empowering model for older adults, we need to look for those people that are just aging beautifully.

279
00:49:13,500 --> 00:49:25,500
And we know them. I mean, there's a light that shines in it. You've met people, Mark, I've met people where when you're with them, even if they're they've lost all kinds of physical abilities and all, there's a kind of an inner light that shines.

280
00:49:25,500 --> 00:49:27,500
You want to be around them.

281
00:49:27,500 --> 00:49:30,500
You see that there's something special about them.

282
00:49:30,500 --> 00:49:34,500
And those are the kind of people that we can all find if we do.

283
00:49:34,500 --> 00:49:48,500
If we open ourselves to it and we look for them and if we can't find one on our own, you know, my book or other good books or whatever can point the direction to help us find such models around us, it can be it can be critical.

284
00:49:48,500 --> 00:50:01,500
Yeah. And another influencer that you've surrounded yourself with is not only just the rabbi and this understanding transitions of life, but then the other sojourners that come to your workshops, the sojourners that read your book.

285
00:50:01,500 --> 00:50:10,500
And as you walk the the talk and talk the walk throughout every day living, you're meeting all kinds of great people.

286
00:50:10,500 --> 00:50:22,500
And those are some of your influencers as well. Is there anybody that that you had one of those aha moments when you met somebody and they go, I get it.

287
00:50:22,500 --> 00:50:25,500
Have you ever had that?

288
00:50:25,500 --> 00:50:38,500
Yes, I've been privileged to have that and I got to say that one of one of those moments came when a woman who was God, I was in my late 50s and she was already into her 70s.

289
00:50:38,500 --> 00:50:41,500
But her name is Anne. Her name is Anne.

290
00:50:41,500 --> 00:50:44,500
And she came to one of our retreats.

291
00:50:44,500 --> 00:50:55,500
And I saw this woman with a passion for continually learning and for continually making a difference and continually growing.

292
00:50:55,500 --> 00:51:03,500
And I was so impressed with her that it turned out that she ended up evolving into my primary retreat partner for 15 years.

293
00:51:03,500 --> 00:51:18,500
And now ad is 90. I'm 76. She's 90. She's no longer able to do retreats with me, but she is doing online classes, including one that she's just starting next next month that she calls aging into the 80s.

294
00:51:18,500 --> 00:51:28,500
And it's for people in their 80s and an online zoom format who want to learn about the challenges and opportunities of being an elder when you're in your 80s.

295
00:51:28,500 --> 00:51:48,500
And so I've been privileged to have several of these bright lights in my life, but I think a larger point that I would take from your question, I would say more that it is critical to find a community of kindred spirits if we aspire to aim high as we age.

296
00:51:48,500 --> 00:52:02,500
Maybe that's one or two, maybe that's three or four, but find some people in our life that we could share our deepest understandings and our fears and our aspirations and our joys and we can support each other.

297
00:52:02,500 --> 00:52:08,500
Because I don't think you can age in the way that I talk about in isolation.

298
00:52:08,500 --> 00:52:15,500
You need some kindred spirits, some true community to support you and you help to support them.

299
00:52:15,500 --> 00:52:35,500
Yeah, is there is there one thought in your mind that you want our listeners to go away with that is the essence of what your book is all about is so that you know I really was so impressed with your writing.

300
00:52:35,500 --> 00:52:55,500
And so I was so impressed with the topic and we need a greater and a deeper discussion about this so that we're aging consciously we're living consciously in our retirement years and I just don't want to see people, you know, be cast to the side.

301
00:52:55,500 --> 00:53:05,500
I want people to live their best life possible whatever that means to them is there some nugget that you can leave us with.

302
00:53:05,500 --> 00:53:18,500
You know, I think the most important thing I would I would leave you and your listeners with mark is that we all know that we live in a world that is in crisis.

303
00:53:18,500 --> 00:53:33,500
And we live in a world where it is hard to find true wisdom we see a lot of idiots out there with a lot of power but look where they're taking the world look or they're taking the environment look or they're taking society.

304
00:53:33,500 --> 00:53:48,500
There are millions and millions and millions and millions of us who are retiring who have gifts to give who have skills to give who have good health and have energy.

305
00:53:48,500 --> 00:54:02,500
And we can make a difference the world needs the gifts of conscious elders we can't retire from life and retire giving our gifts just because we've retired from our jobs.

306
00:54:02,500 --> 00:54:17,500
We have gifts to give and it's so important to find our way of giving them and the more we can grow in consciousness the more we'll know what our way is and how we can best give those gifts to others while at the same time finding fulfillment for ourselves.

307
00:54:17,500 --> 00:54:28,500
Well said and you know, I think about all the indigenous cultures around the world and in in our country as well.

308
00:54:28,500 --> 00:54:46,500
You know being an elder was important to the society was important to the young people to look up you know have somebody to look up to for that depth in that breath of life and I hope that we can get to that place.

309
00:54:46,500 --> 00:55:11,500
Because there's so much wisdom you know the internet and where we're going today can bring us a lot of knowledge but without that wisdom knowledge is empty and I fear for our younger generations that I hope they will embrace their elders I hope they will embrace wisdom.

310
00:55:11,500 --> 00:55:20,500
And it's great to know a lot of things there's nothing wrong with that but it has to be surrounded and couched in wisdom and in love.

311
00:55:20,500 --> 00:55:35,500
And there's a big gulf between the generations now I think we all know that but part of that is that young people don't have many models for what a really fulfilled elderhood can be.

312
00:55:35,500 --> 00:56:04,500
And so I think it's incumbent on all of us who who feel called to true elderhood to grow into it and to show younger people that hey as you think about your own aging just look at how alive and vibrant and meaningful the lives of older people can be and when younger people start to see more and more of that mark then gradually a lot of these ages stereotypes are going to start to fall away.

313
00:56:04,500 --> 00:56:20,500
But it's up to us I don't expect younger people to honor me as an elder just because I'm old I expect them to honor me because they see something in me and the way I want to be with them and everything that they think wow that's really appealing I'm drawn to that.

314
00:56:20,500 --> 00:56:32,500
I agree I agree so hard wholeheartedly run we're up against the end of our our interview here and I'm just so grateful that our paths and crossed.

315
00:56:32,500 --> 00:57:01,500
I love love love to your book worth of similar kindred and you know maybe I can make it out to one of your workshops here in the future and I I'm inspired by your proclivity to want to help others become more conscious of the way they're living and the way they're aging and I love the way you're challenging all of us to teach you.

316
00:57:01,500 --> 00:57:15,500
All of us to change the way we look at ourselves when you change the way you look at life the way you look at aging aging will change and so I'm inspired by that.

317
00:57:15,500 --> 00:57:29,500
Well thank you mark and mark I would like to tell your listeners that they can learn a whole lot about conscious eldering and our work they can read many many articles they can see interviews they can.

318
00:57:29,500 --> 00:57:48,500
There's poetry there's all kinds of inspirational material in our website learn about our retreats and our website is center for conscious eldering dot com I know that's a lot center for conscious eldering dot com.

319
00:57:48,500 --> 00:58:04,500
All right thank you so much Ron for being on aging today and when you write that sequel or the updated version reach out to me and let's get you on again and have another lively discussion here on aging today.

320
00:58:04,500 --> 00:58:17,500
Thank you mark I really enjoyed talking with you all right this is Mark Turnbull your host and I want to thank all of you for tuning into aging today as a reminder we are the podcast where together we're exploring the men.

321
00:58:17,500 --> 00:58:40,500
We're exploring the many options to aging on your terms join us every Monday when we release a new conversation on aging today to your favorite podcast channel and remember this we're all in the process of aging and as we age we really are better together so stay young at heart.

322
00:58:40,500 --> 00:59:08,500
You make me feel so young you make me feel like spring is from and every time I see your face I'm such a happy individual moment that she's been I want to go play hide and see I want to go and bounce the moon just like a toy balloon well you and I

323
00:59:08,500 --> 00:59:29,500
just like a bullet tarts running across the metal pick up lots of forget me not so you made me feel so young you made me feel there are songs to be sung there will still be wrong and wonderful thing to be fun

324
00:59:29,500 --> 00:59:58,500
you've been listening to aging today where together we explore the options to aging on your terms join Mark in his guest next week for another lively discussion on proactively aging on your terms connecting you to the professional advice of his special guests with the goal of creating better days throughout the aging process your host has been Mark Turnbull join Mark in his guest every week on aging today your podcast to

325
00:59:58,500 --> 01:00:22,500
exploring your options for aging on your terms and you when I'm ready you make me feel the way I feel today because you make me feel so you make me feel so you make me feel so young

326
01:00:22,500 --> 01:00:30,500
you make me feel so young you make me feel so young

327
01:00:30,500 --> 01:00:33,080
(upbeat music)