You’re worth much more — This truism came from my niece, an accomplished pianist. She advertised, sent out flyers for her free concert. No one came. A friend suggested she charge for her show. …

And its ramifications — I have a portrait-style photograph of Del Ward near my desk. It was taken during Covid-19 when the hairdresser was unavailable. It is my favorite because her hair is its natural color. As Del aged, she was concerned her hair would turn gray. It was not gray; it was flaxen…

It is often overlooked but it is vital — My 102-year-old sister began acting strange. The normal, articulate senior began mumbling abstract, disjointed sentences. Her daughter, my niece, was alarmed. Her mother had always been a “with it” kind of person, not given to abstractions. She packed her off to the hospital in San Francisco. There, the nurses fed…

And how it went. — I lived in Washington D.C. in the 1950s. My neighbor was fresh in from New York. His primary sport interest was Dove hunting, which I knew nothing about. He asked me if I knew any farmers. I said yes, one in nearby Maryland. “Could you arrange for me to go…

This would be my last super eager project till ill health got in my way. Feeling that I was slowing down, I wanted to leave my fellow seniors with something to remember me by. I proposed to Management that I build a Butterfly Bush Garden in a forgotten garden plot…

Don’t overlook this important detail in your life. Last week a man moved into our senior community. He had recently lost his wife and was full of grief. He told of how his wife had been helpful to him in so many ways. He had never told his wife how…

Keeping information from your spouse is a dangerous thing to do Years ago, when working in the insurance business, I had a “death call.” This is where you discuss with a new widow the payout of her deceased husband’s life insurance. This lady knew nothing in advance. In her late…

It was a narrow escape, but life prevailed. I was dying. I was sure of it. I wanted to tell my sons I loved them, but my voice could not get outside my head. The scene inside my head was a confusion of tangled wire crisscrossed with broken boards. I…

Don’t expect 911 to take care of your mistakes. I hit my elbow on the door to enter a room in my senior apartment. It hurt. I looked at my arm. I could see blood running down my arm, but I could not see the wound. I cleaned the dripping…