Guest Post By Gramps Jeffrey, author of “I Don’t Want to Turn 3” According to an often-quoted sociology study, “Grandparents and Family Crisis,” by Cherin & Furstenberg, 30% of grandparents are classified as being “remote.” The remote definition of these almost one out of every three grandparents essentially means that they rarely see their grandchildren and most contact is made on birthdays and holidays. (Or as the New York Times wrote in their review of the book, “The New American Grandparent: A Place in the Family: A Life Apart,“ the non-fiction... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” ~ John Lennon, lyric from “Beautiful Boy,” from his last album, ‘Double Fantasy,’ with Yoko Ono. My intention was to follow up on my last blog post by describing types of journals one could use throughout life. Then on January 2, 2022, my mother died at age 97. She was healthy, her mind was still sharp, but her body started shutting down. So when the grieving started, I changed my plan and decided to write about what the grief of losing my mother has taught me so far. I’ll... Read More

By Maggie Davenport for the NABBW Winter. A time of natural rest and retreat, of wrapping ourselves in fluffy blankets and settling down, reflecting (or not!). Meanwhile, in perfect sync with nature, our furry and winged friends are nesting, mating, and traveling to warmer climates – making ready for a flurry of activity in the spring. Resolutions With January in the rear view mirror, and many of us still feeling stuck in the doldrums after  coming  off of the winter holiday season, lots of us are still a bit out of sync with our usual routines. But despite this disorientation, millions... Read More

Guest post by Gramps Jeffrey, author of “I Don’t Want to Turn 3” For years, we Baby Boomers have viewed ourselves as the best generation our great country has ever seen. Prior to President Biden, who is a member of the Silent Generation (born 1925 to 1945), we Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) have actually run the country since the early 1990s: Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001, George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009, Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017, and Donald Trump from 2017 to 2021. But I’m asking you to look at the chaos we have created. Two issues stand out starkly for me: Our children are dying... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW In reviewing the blogs that I have written over the last year and a half, I have discovered they have some common themes. These themes are: – The Pandemic – Change – Loss – Grief In some of my posts, I have shared the thoughts and feelings I have had while dealing with these issues. But I have not discussed the major tool/process that I have used for the last 29 years, which is journaling. To begin with, I want to be clear that journaling should not be confused with keeping a diary, though they ARE often confused with each... Read More

Guest post by Gramps Jeffrey, author of “I Don’t Want to Turn 3” I remember celebrating my father’s 60th birthday, and I did not say this out loud, but definitely thought “he is an old man”. But he lived close to another three decades and I am glad he did. His father (my grandfather) was not as lucky, and he died at the age of 49. Now that we Baby Boomers are in our 60’s and 70’s and beyond, it’s my observation that we just don’t seem as old as our parents when they were our current age. Perhaps this fortune is caused by modern science — or perhaps we just lose our... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW Since March of 2020, it seems that the only subject I have see written or spoken about is “self-care.” I was first introduced to the concept of self-care in the 70s, and my introduction coincided with the beginning of the “Me” generation. Perhaps you remember theses days: Baby Boomers were turning 30 and still trying to individuate and separate from their parents. The concept was focused on those of us women who had chosen to follow society’s traditional expectations: get married, stay home, and raise children. Self-care began as an action to take... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW All day, no — for many weeks — I’ve been ruminating on this song: “Make new friends but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.” I learned it almost 70 years ago, when I was a Brownie. Perhaps you once sang it as well… The question I am asking myself today is how does each metal signify old and new friendships? Gold is a precious metal. It is in it highest form at 24 carets. It is highly malleable and signifies wealth. It is durable and will last a long time. Silver is a white precious metal that is ductile and malleable.... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW Recently during a water physical therapy session, I was walking my laps and the music of my youth began to play. I looked around the pool and noticed that the six of us in the class, all women, had begun to move to the rhythm of the songs. I realized that while our ages ranged from 20 to 70, we were all moving to the beat of the same music. I started discussing the music with one of my pool companions. Slightly older than I, she recommended I watch the documentary Echo in the Canyon, a 2018 film which celebrates the popular music that came out of L.A.’s Laurel... Read More

By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate After eleven years, I decided it was time to deliver the fruitcake my mother had sent me in 2009 just before she passed away. I would take it to the meadow where I had scattered her ashes.  I had kept it in my freezer (even through a severe downsizing) because I just couldn’t bear to throw it out. Her fruitcake was much too heavy for me to eat, and I didn’t want to give it to anyone. Taking it to where she rested seemed a logical thing to do. The day could not have been more gorgeous. White clouds smeared across the baby blue heavens,... Read More