Ageing Well in August # 2

August is all about ageing well – how are you going?

A month of tips to help us age and live well

After having fun in July with #JournalinginJuly, I’ve joined Sue from Sizzling Towards 60 and Beyond for another month of prompts – this time to help us recognise how to age well and live well #AgeingWellinAugust.

In keeping with sharing an old photo, as I did last week, in Ageing Well in August #1, I’m sharing this gorgeous shot of me from many, many years ago. Obviously it was before I’d perfected my Debbie Smile 🙂

But this is how some people feel about ageing, they are resigned to it and it makes them grumpy and out of sorts – whereas I try to see it as something different – an opportunity to continue to grow, to learn new things, new experiences, a privilege denied to many. It’s all in the attitude!

This week’s tips also encompass some of that attitude – be open to new ideas, stay curious and laugh more. I know that it’s not always easy but it’s amazing how you can turn your mind around little by little.

If you missed my first post for Days 1-10 of Ageing well in August, you can read it here – Ageing Well in August #1

So now we’re up to Days 11-17 of August

11. Drink more water

I need this one tattooed on my forehead! I drink lots of black weak tea but I know I should also be drinking more water than I do. I find it harder to do in winter – do you?

12. Be visible and proud

I like to think I’m visible and I’m definitely proud. I’m not afraid to put myself out there and I love wearing colour! I actually wrote a post about my dislike for the colour beige. Beige – is it really a colour?

It can be hard as you get older but I’m determined to stay visible for as long as I can. Volunteering in a small community is good for my self esteem and visibility and I’m proud to be involved in Rotary.

13. Stop saying ‘young people these days‘

I don’t think I use this phrase very much but I often wonder at all the massive changes that have occurred in the years since I was a teenager and a young mother – in terms of technology, political correctness, trends – you name it! I’m actually glad to be the age I am now and have the experience to deal with much of this!

And I honestly believe you can be young at any age.

This retro video from ABC TV is interesting!

14. Stay curious – be interested in life

I love this one, it is so very true. Do you remember how your children would ask endless questions as they were growing up – why this, why that, why?? It could get very annoying, but it was their way of finding out how the world works and you were the one to help them to make sense of it all. We mustn’t let our curiosity disappear, no matter how old we get!

Listening to people and asking questions is a great way of staying interested.

As an ex-teacher, I worked in a minimum security correctional centre (jail, prison, gaol) for male inmates, and this was one of our favourite sayings:

Teachers open the door, you enter by yourself.

15. Be open to new ideas

I have become a fan of listening to podcasts while I walk every day. I lose myself and forget how long I’ve been out as I just love listening to a variety of topics.

Some are funny podcasts and I laugh out loud, scaring the kangaroos in the process; some are educational and I learn about different views and ideas; some are interviews with interesting people, not necessarily famous people but those who have led different lives to me. But whatever genre they are, they all keep me open to new ideas and curious about the world around me.

I’m always learning new things – just this week I learnt about the terms Hopepunk and Grimdark and how it relates to books and TV shows . I’m very much a Hopepunk type of person, what about you? Have you heard of these terms before?

Hopepunk says that genuinely and sincerely caring about something, anything, requires bravery and strength. Hopepunk isn’t ever about submission or acceptance: It’s about standing up and fighting for what you believe in. It’s about standing up for other people. It’s about DEMANDING a better, kinder world, and truly believing that we can get there if we care about each other as hard as we possibly can, with every drop of power in our little hearts.

Source

Whereas Grimdark is: a literary descriptor for genre texts and media which evoke a pervasively gritty, bleak, pessimistic, or nihilistic view of the world. These are the worlds of modern-era Batman, Breaking Bad,The Walk ing Dead, and so many other contemporary pop culture properties — universes in which cruelty is a given and social systems are destined to betray or disappoint.

16. Take care of your appearance

I like to think this is an important one regardless of our age but I know it can be easy to fall into the trap of not caring. As I no longer go out to work I often have house days where I see no-one apart from the Mathematician and on those days I’m very low maintenance! Other days I make an effort with my choice of clothes, but I rarely wear makeup and rarely have my nails looking nice! I like having regular hair appointments, not because I’m vain but because it’s one of my limited ways of splurging these days!! I also like to visit the local beauticians in our little town and having infrequent facials and skincare advice, it’s a social thing too.

I remember my grandmother always had beautiful nails and a weekly event was watching her ‘do’ her nails on a Sunday night. She also had a certain classic style and was always a glamorous looking grandmother. My mother also has lovely nails and a stylish wardrobe as well as not looking anywhere near her actual age – I like to think, apart from the nails, that I am following them both by opting for my own style instead of going along with the crowd and whatever the trend of the day is.

And yes I have made great progress on not biting my nails in recent years, but they will never be up to my grandmother or my mother’s level! And that’s OK 🙂

17. Laugh more

This is one that I am very passionate about and have written numerous posts on. Just this week I wrote a post about What makes me laugh! I also think we all need to embrace our inner child more, regardless of how old we are.

How about you?

Do you have any thoughts on any of these tips? Do you feel like you’re ageing well?

I’ve enjoyed jotting down my thoughts for the prompts this week and maybe I’ve made you think about the various aspects of ageing. I hope so.

Let me know what you’re thinking by leaving me a comment. If you’ve written a post about Ageing Well in August, feel free to link up here with us.

See you next week 🙂

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Deb xx

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