Family

Most of us carried a picture for years without realizing it. In the picture, our grown children live within driving distance. Sunday dinners are loud and crowded. The grandchildren sleep over on Fridays. Holidays come with arguments over who brings the pie, not over who isn’t speaking to whom…

We were promised a lighter load. Raise them, launch them, and then, the story went, you’d finally get your life back. Travel. Grandchildren on weekends. A quiet house and a good book. For many women over 60, the quiet house arrived. The lighter load did not. Instead, we find ourselves still lying awake over a son…

You host Thanksgiving every year, and probably a variety of other events. Your son, a capable man who runs a department of 40 people, always offers to bring something (because you taught him that), but calls the day before to ask what to bring and how to make it. Your husband of 38 years has never once loaded the…

You remember birthdays. You send messages. You ask about school, friends, and what’s new in the family. You know your grandchildren love you. But sometimes you wonder: what would happen if you stopped being the first to reach out? Would they call? Would they write? Would they know how to start a conversation?

We all hope to see our grandchildren grow up to be happy, healthy, productive and compassionate adults. The part about compassion becomes a huge challenge in today’s world where media frequently spews out negativity and prods us to criticise others…

I’ve heard those words more than once over the years. And every time I hear them, I think the person saying them has probably never shared their life with a dog the way many of us have. Because to those of us who love our dogs, they’re never only dogs. They’re family. And many women over 60 will agree…

When we talk about aging in place, we usually think about the place. We love our homes. We want to stay where it’s familiar, and we want to be safe. As we get older, we start thinking about other things we never thought about before. Are there stairs? Do we need an elevator now? Can […]

Estrangement from a child is a profoundly emotional and heart-wrenching experience, regardless of age. For parents over 60, the added layers of age-related concerns can make this situation even more complex…

This year, my son became a father for the first time – and I became a grandmother for the first time! I wrote an article about it, in letter format, if you want to read it. As a retired community health nurse, I was delighted to see my lovely daughter-in-law connect with every local resource available to new mothers. At the same time, I found myself worrying about how few community supports seemed to exist for my son as a new dad…

There are bound to be differences of opinion between two people. You can love each other and still find yourselves fighting over where to go on vacation. And sometimes we say or do something that hurts the other person’s feelings and requires an apology…