Aging
Reflections on the process and gifts of growing older
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WHERE GRACE HIDES
What does grace look like when our bodies betray us? It’s an uncomfortable question—one we often avoid. We speak of grace as if it always arrives clean and…
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ALL LIFE HAS MEANING
All Life Has Meaning. First in a 5-part series. from The Reflective Pen Manifesto. Suppose for a moment that all of life—not just the “good parts”—had meaning.
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When Everyone Is Dying
What do we do when everyone seems to be dying? Lately, that question has followed me from week to week. I’ve been to six funerals in the past…
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A Reflection on Aging
There was a time—long ago—when carrying groceries wasn’t even part of the conversation. At 26, I was learning to carry something far heavier: a diagnosis.
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The Story We Carry and the Ones We Let Go
The Story We Carry and the Ones We Let Go - What If Memories Had Weight?Not the kind you can step on a scale and measure—but something else.…
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Old Pets, New Lessons
I had a dog once who waited for me to come home from the hospital, even though no one had explained where I’d gone. He simply waited. On…
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Prayer – How Does It Change With Age?
Some mornings, I sit with my hands wrapped around a mug of tea and realize I haven’t spoken a single word. Not to another soul. Not even in…
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Aging to Perfection
Suppose for a moment that aging were entirely optional. That you could hit pause at 45, keep the skin taut, the knees bendy, the memory sharp. Would you…
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When Life Hands You a Diagnosis— How to Receive, Accept, and Keep Living (and Laughing)
How do you keep living when you receive a difficult diagnosis? Suppose for a moment that your body was a house, and one day, you found a crack…
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Say Goodbye Without Regret
What does it mean to say goodbye when there’s still time—but not enough of it?I recently lost a dear friend. We had one of those slow goodbyes, the…
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The Stories We Carry
Some stories we tell ourselves over breakfast each morning. Others we pack away in boxes labeled 'someday.' Which of yours are weighing you down, and which ones are…
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Lessons From Your Younger Self
Suppose for a moment that you could send a message across time to your younger self... What would you say? What wisdom would you offer from the vantage…
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How Old is “Old”
Are you old yet? Or more to the point—do you worry about getting old? And exactly how old is ‘old?’ I have asked myself these questions over the…
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Growing Whole, Not Old: Embracing Spiritual Evolution in Later Life
The journey to growing whole begins when society expects us to start winding down. While wrinkles deepen and hair whitens, something remarkable happens beneath the surface—
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Spiritual Reflections on Illness and Aging
After avoiding the illness that changed the world, I finally experienced firsthand the effects of COVID-19 in my own body. Following are reflections on the gifts of that…
