As a child growing up in Parchment, Michigan, I remember our community adopting a refugee family from Latvia.  We were fascinated to think that they had to learn our language and way of living and we were eager to understand their stories and customs.  After we left Parchment, my path never seemed to join that of refugees again nor did the word come into conversations until I came to Geneva, Switzerland.

When Mrs. Sadako Ogata became the High Commissioner (1991-2000) of the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), I was privileged to serve on a council of local leaders who she invited to become involved with the UNHCR in order to promote a realistic understanding  of both the plight and contributions of refugees within the Swiss and international communities.    Mrs. Ogata personally moved us to understand the multiple issues at play.   When you are forced out of your home with only the clothes on your back and join the hundreds of thousands seeking refuge in the UNHCR camps, you are grateful that such an organization exists with the extensive logistics behind it.  And yet, your deepest hope is to return to your own home.

The most moving picture that I can share to represent the plight of the refugee is an event planned for the 50th anniversary of the UNHCR in Geneva.  Thousands of floating candles were placed in the Rhone River that flows out of Lake Geneva.  It wasn’t possible to represent the 40 million refugees in the world, but the image was moving.  As the candles floated, some would capsize and disappear, others would break off in little clusters and then split up once again, while yet others would find themselves alone with their light flickering.  It is a picture that stays with me as I think of what trials refugees experience and the courage they prove.

As we look at the meaning of Age Esteem, I believe that refugees offer us an important lesson.  No matter where we go, what trials we meet, the obstacles in our path or the need to leave the past behind and move on we will have to count on our own inner resources to meet each new day with hope and the understanding that what is most important is within us.  Refugees such as Einstein and Madelaine Albright who have had only their know-how and will power as baggage teach us a powerful lesson.  We too can contribute our skills and knowledge to make this a better world with however little we may have.

Geneva is home to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) established in 1951 to give legal, social, economic, and political aid to refugees. The UNHCR is the successor of the International Refugee Organization whose first efforts focused on Europeans displaced by World War II.  It has since assisted refugees in multiple countries globally. It is financed by voluntary government contributions. The office won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1954 and 1981.

A friend forwarded this beautiful, moving letter about life in Japan following the devastating natural disasters.  I have since discovered that it was written by Anne Thomas and published in ODE.  It is dated 14 March 2011

“Things here in Sendai have been rather surreal. But I am very  blessed to have wonderful friends who are helping me a lot. Since my shack is  even more worthy of that name, I am now staying at a friend’s home. We share  supplies like water, food and a kerosene heater. We sleep lined up in one  room, eat by candlelight, share stories. It is warm, friendly, and beautiful.

During the day we help each other clean up the mess in our homes.  People sit in their cars, looking at news on their navigation screens, or line  up to get drinking water when a source is open. If someone has water  running in their home, they put out a sign so people can come to fill up their  jugs and buckets. It’s utterly amazingly that where I am there has been no looting, no  pushing in lines. People leave their front door open, as it is safer when an earthquake strikes. People keep saying, “Oh, this is how it used to  be in the old days when everyone helped one another.” Quakes keep coming. Last night they struck about every 15 minutes.  Sirens are constant and helicopters pass overhead often.

We got water for a few hours in our homes last night, and now it is  for half a day. Electricity came on this afternoon. Gas has not yet come on.  But all of this is by area. Some people have these things, others do not. No  one has washed for several days. We feel grubby, but there are so much more important concerns than that for us now. I love this peeling away of non-essentials. Living fully on the level of instinct, of intuition,  of caring, of what is needed for survival, not just of me, but of the  entire group.

There are strange parallel universes happening. Houses a mess in  some places, yet then a house with futons or laundry out drying in the  sun. People lining up for water and food, and yet a few people out  walking their dogs. All happening at the same time.

Other unexpected touches of beauty are first, the silence at night.  No cars. No one out on the streets. And the heavens at night are scattered  with stars. I usually can see about two, but now the whole sky is filled.  The mountains are Sendai are solid and with the crisp air we can see  them silhouetted against the sky magnificently.

And the Japanese themselves are so wonderful. I come back to my  shack to check on it each day, now to send this e-mail since the electricity  is on, and I find food and water left in my entranceway. I have no idea  from whom, but it is there. Old men in green hats go from door to door checking  to see if everyone is OK. People talk to complete strangers asking if they  need help. I see no signs of fear. Resignation, yes, but fear or panic,  no.

They tell us we can expect aftershocks, and even other major quakes,  for another month or more. And we are getting constant tremors, rolls,  shaking, rumbling. I am blessed in that I live in a part of Sendai that is a  bit elevated, a bit more solid than other parts. So, so far this area is  better off than others. Last night my friend’s husband came in from the  country, bringing food and water. Blessed again.

Somehow at this time I realize from direct experience that there is  indeed an enormous Cosmic evolutionary step that is occurring all over the  world right at this moment. And somehow as I experience the events  happening now in Japan, I can feel my heart opening very wide. My brother asked me  if I felt so small because of all that is happening. I don’t. Rather, I  feel as part of something happening that much larger than myself. This wave  of birthing (worldwide) is hard, and yet magnificent.

Thank you again for your care and Love of me.”

Many of you have contributed towards helping the people of Japan following the earthquakes and tsunami.  I thought this would be meaningful to you as a reflection on life and age esteem.

Bonnie Fatio

Attending the Commission on the Status of Women with the World YWCA at the United Nations is an intergenerational experience, and an energizing one!

Women of all ages from the entire world share real life experiences in preventing, overcoming, and striving to eliminate violence against women and girls, discrimination, and racial injustice while promoting equal access to education, decent work, finances, health care, safety, political opportunities, decision making and dignity.

The intergenerational commitment to sharing these issues at each age and working together to promote women at every stage of living is essential to making this happen.

Look at your life at your age today in the environment in which you live. Imagine that

• You have no pure water. You walk for hours each day to carry the infected water that you do find.
• You are unable to attend school because your mother is ill and you must replace her to work in the home.
• You denied decent work opportunities or advancement in the workplace.
• You risk violence and rape on the path to school.
• You do not have access to health care. The nearest infirmary is three hours by foot.
• Your parents arrange for you to marry while you are still a child. You have no choice.

This may be difficult for you to imagine or it maybe the way life is where you live.  Either way it is important for discussions and solutions to be intergenerational.

Bonnie Fatio

Bonnie Fatio spoke to the Paying Forward Club in the Tuscany Falls Ballroom at Pebble Creek, Arizona.  People in the Paying Forward Club give of their time and talents in multiple ways.  They also provide a list of places in need of volunteers.  Bonnie’s talk was on the theme  “Aging and the benefits of volunteering”, sharing research, stories, tips and techniques with active audience participation.

“After hearing Bonnie whatever I look at, I’m going to look at it in a positive way.  I think at our age we can look at the people in our life and say “I don’t need that person in my life anymore.”  That gives us power.   It was wonderful to hear Bonnie.  She really spoke to me. Ginette, 63

“I’m going through a rough transition.  I’ve recently retired and I feel like I have this whole part of life ahead of me.  I’m not sure what I want to do with that.  Bonnie’s talk was a good motivator and inspiration that has given me a lot to think about.” Grace, 58

“We get such negative thoughts on a daily basis… bombarded with what a “bad time” this is. I really identified with Bonnie, especially where she said to replace the negative thoughts I have with something positive.  I think all of us are guilty of being self-critical, but it’s time we divested ourselves of that language and replace it with something else.” Carol, 65

Galerie Chausse-Coq
presents an exposition of watercolors by
Helen Drew
with the participation of
Madame Zita Burgy
7 december – 23 december 2010
Vernissage the 9 december from 6pm.
Galerie Chausse-Coq
Arcade rue Chausse-Coq 16
1204 Geneva, Switzerland
www.helendrew.com

Helen Drew is a friend and model of Age Esteem.  I hope many of you will be able to view her work.

Bonnie Fatio

]]> http://www.ageesteem.com/2010/12/04/invitation/feed/ 0 http://www.ageesteem.com/2010/10/26/growing-older-in-japan/ http://www.ageesteem.com/2010/10/26/growing-older-in-japan/#comments Tue, 26 Oct 2010 22:56:05 +0000 Bonnie http://almania.tchmachines.com/~gwfrvzlm/?p=1851

Japan is the second oldest society in the world, and fastest aging.  But many Japanese are now growing old and dying alone.  Despite a culture that heavily emphasizes respect for the elderly, 3.86 million Japanese seniors are now living alone, many of whom are separated from or ignored by their families.

Where Japanese families traditionally lived with three generations under the same roof, that has become less common in the country’s crowded cities, especially as seniors now often live long enough to see their great-grandchildren.  There’s not enough space for families to live together any more.

The government expects that within five years, more than a quarter of its 127 million citizens will be 65 or older.

Global Action On Aging newsletter

Your choice of partner is also important.  The study shows that women are most happy when their partners participate in family life.

Not enough people actually sit down to ask themselves what makes them happy and then do what they can to make their lives happier. So ask yourself

• What makes me happy?
• How can I build more of this into my life?

And then act on your answers!

Bonnie Fatio

Do you choose how you act or react when an unexpected situation arises? – or – Do you normally accept the situation and suffer the consequences?

Your happiness may depend on how you answered.

In a recent publication of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they presented a study run over 25 years in Australia which shows that happiness is based on choice and the life goals that each of us sets.  Happiness is greater for those who know how to choose than it is among those who simply accept life as it happens.

We may not be able to change what happens, but we can choose how we react to what happens.

Bonnie Fatio

Bonnie Fatio will be speaking at the YWCA Southeastern Regional Conference in Miami, Florida on September 17th.

The YWCA is a global movement of 25 million women and girls working for justice, peace, health, human dignity, freedom and the environment in 125 countries.  Age esteem is important in the lives of those within the YWCA movement regardless of age.

These are not cash-rich people.  They are time rich, those who live a million hours.  This means that they are living 114 or more years.

Today there are about 300,000 people who are validated to be at least 100 years old, and by mid century this number is estimated to grow to about 3.4 million.  There are 75 supercentenarians, meaning that they are 110 years old or more, living in the world today.  Their documents leave no doubt that they are indeed the age they are said to be.

The longest documented life is that of Jeanne Calment of France (1875–1997), who died at age 122 years and 164 days. Kama Chinen, born May 10, 1895 in Okinawa, Japan, is now the oldest living person in the world.

As we continue to live longer it will become even more important to age healthfully with Age Esteem