A Day of Wonderful!

Have you passed by the wonders of life? There is a television ad here in Europe for a soft drink which is offered to a man in a retirement home. When he drinks it he says, “I wonder what else I have passed by in life?” He then proceeds to look at his day as an experience to be lived and tests new opportunities.

This scenario reminds me of the film Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling when Julia Roberts says, “I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special.”

In both the ad and the movie, what makes the difference between a day waiting for more of the same and minutes of wonderful is the person. How does he or she choose to live the minutes?

Is your day a piece of wonderful, or part of a lifetime of nothing special? Test these simple techniques to enhance your age-esteem.

• Tell yourself you will have a day of wonderful.
• Ask yourself, “What would make this a day of wonderful? Then incorporate that into your day. Test something new. Visit a new place; experiment with different foods; join a local tour; listen to modern music; invite someone to come for tea.
• Keep a Day of Wonderful Journal. At the end of each day record what made the day one of wonderful.

You may be surprised at the effect this has on you, and even those around you.

Have a day of wonderful!

Bonnie Fatio

What memories do you have of your grandparents? Were they present in your life?

When my sister googled one of the homes we lived in as children, she discovered that it was for sale, and there were photos showing each room. One of our common memories was having the grandparents come for Christmas one year, which was exceptional.  We rarely saw them more than once a year, when we visited them in the summer. So, having them with us for the holidays was truly special.

Our other grandparents lived close enough for us to travel to spend Thanksgiving in their home. I still can smell turkey and mince pie and feel the warmth and excitement of being with the other cousins for the day. We did not have mobile phones and i-pads back then with apps allowing us to see each other despite the distance, and these gatherings were precious to us.

Grandparents are important. They are the foundation of the larger family, and often the glue that holds it together. Today Grandparents around the globe are caring for and often raising their grandchildren due to the parent’s illness, busy career, and lack of funds for daycare as well as divorces where a single parent must do all.

In a poll of children answering questions about their grandparents, I learned that grandparents are seen to also be good listeners and less judgmental. We tend to be more available to our grandchildren when we are with them. Our love and interest in our grandchildren differ from that of a parent and adds a valuable dimension to the emotional and intellectual education of our grandchildren.

Happy Grandparent’s Day!

Bonnie Fatio

This poster speaks to me and my age-esteem. – And it speaks even louder as I gather years. It isn’t how many years I have lived or how many more years I may have. It is how much I have lived during my years here on Earth.

None of us knows how long we will live or what may lie ahead on our path. That is not in our control. What we do influences how we live each day.

Are you truly living your life? Ask yourself these five questions to get started.

• Am I fully present for others? When I am with them am I truly ‘with’ them?
• Do I consciously use my senses of sight, sound, smell, feel and taste?
• Am I doing something that will positively influence the lives of others, even though I may never see the results?
• Do I laugh each day and celebrate often?
• Do I live with emotion, passion and joy?

Add to these questions what makes you feel that you are fully “alive” as you live each day. I would love to hear your thoughts.

One of the keys to age-esteem is to live each day. Make the most of now!

Bonnie Fatio

KEEP UP YOUR “AGE ESTEEM”

Does the accumulation of years sometimes get you down?  Then have an injection of positivity from Bonnie Fatio, the Founder of AgeEsteem, an organisation which provides everyone with “the vision and means to live our lives fully at every age with a positive attitude”. 

Based in Switzerland but accessible from anywhere in the world, Bonnie is a highly experienced motivational speaker and coach who decided to tackle the negative views and stereotyping about seniors that abound in society, and which we ourselves absorb to our detriment.  She envisions “a world where age and aging are celebrated and people of all ages are recognized as important, contributing members of society” and works hard to promote this.   Bonnie is a sought-after speaker around the globe, and runs workshops to help people feel good about themselves at any age, as well as contributing her advice and message to other organisations, including the United Nations.

You can read about Bonnie and AgeEsteem on her website  www.ageesteem.com  where you can sign up to receive her zesty newsletters as I do and even receive free e-gifts from this inspirational lady.   Go on, get a regular dose of Age Esteem. It’s all completely free and is equally valid for men and women.

Written by age-esteemer Debbie King, this was first published on her blog, Age With Me. Debbie lives AgeEsteem. She has attended AgeEsteem workshops and models positive aging in all she does. I encourage you to visit her site to learn more.  Thank you, Debbie King! – Bonnie Fatio

What Do Others Think Of Us?

“At age 20, we worry about what others think of us; at 40, we don’t care what they think of us; at 60, we discover they haven’t been thinking of us at all.” – Bob Hope

How much time do we worry about such useless matters? Another saying I think is excellent says, “What you think of me is none of my business.” – Anon

“All that really matters is what I think of myself.” – Bonnie Fatio

Age In Other Words

Remember that age is an integral part of many words to describe who we are and what we do in life.

Without age there would be no sage, linkage, or language. We would not be able to engage or envisage. We could not describe ourselves as having courage or a message. Nor could we enjoy either a massage or a vernissage or earn a wage.

Add your own, the list is long, beginning with Advantage, Corsage, Entourage, Gauge, Heritage, Homepage, Lineage, Luggage, Linkage, Mage, Marriage, Mileage, Mintage, Page, Passage, Personage, Percentage, Pilgrimage, Stage, Verbiage, Village …

Bonnie Fatio

The Beauty of Older Women

“So much has been said and sung of beautiful young girls, why doesn’t somebody wake up to the beauty of old women?” – Harriet Beecher Stowe, American Abolitionist and Author

Harriet Beecher Stowe lived from 1811 to 1896. Her quote leads one to believe that very little has changed in the views toward aging, yet aging has transformed greatly during past years. We are healthier, more vital and remain engaged in life as older women. We live our ages with more confidence and age-esteem, and transcend a beauty that only we can bring.

Bonnie Fatio

Marie Skripec, Member of Committee and Volunteer of the YWCA Germany

A Thanksgiving Message

My name is Marie Skripec and I come from Germany. I would like to share some thoughts with you that I wrote down on Monday of the World YWCA conference in Bangkok 2015.

Amongst others I was inspired by Bonnie Fatio and the exercise she did with us where people stood up and said what they were imagining, what they were dreaming of.

So this is what I imagine:

 I Imagine

I imagine a world

where there are no more armed conflicts,

no more wars

no more people that have to flee from their countries,

that have to leave their homes and their beloved behind

I imagine people,

 women and men

to stand up

and say that we don’t want people to be killed,

we don’t want to support governments and people

that develop cruel strategies

and initiate conflicts and wars

in beautiful countries.

We don’t want any more people and governments

that are responsible for the death of so many people

only

because they seek for more resources, influence and power

claiming to operate in the name of democracy.

I imagine a near future

where we don’t spend our money on weapons, soldiers and armies

but on the protection of our environment, our nature and the people around us,

on education and the future of our present and following generations,

on mutual exchange and learning from each other

all around the globe.

I imagine my country

to take more responsibility,

a sustainable Germany

ecologically, economically, socially and culturally.

 I imagine people

that consume less

and instead open their eyes

to see all the beautiful things around them

and conserve them:

trees, flowers, birds, butterflies

women, men, girls and boys

neighbours, friends, sisters and brothers.

We often say

that we should see the world

through the eyes of a child

 Well, I imagine

that we seriously ask children for their opinions

and consider it in our decisions we make

locally, regionally, nationally and globally.

I imagine

children in our governments.

Parliaments consisting of

male and female leaders of all ages.

Deciding on our present and future,

learning from and relating to good and bad

practices and experiences in the past.

A flexible parliament

ready to learn permanently,

listening to its people and all its variety.

I imagine

many raindrops

changing the direction of many rivers

heading towards a just and fair world

I imagine

 a world in peace

where we all live as one.

Thank you Marie Skripec for these meaningful words. May we share these thoughts with you as we recognize our blessings on this Thanksgiving 2015.

Happy Thanksgiving from AgeEsteem,

Bonnie Fatio

Bonnie Fatio and Leonie van Daalen-Röell

Go, Not Knowing Where!

What a blessing to have friends who are true age-esteemers and continue to contribute to our world! Leonie van Daalen-Röell is one of these friends. Leonie, who is Dutch and living in Geneva, Switzerland with her husband of 60 years, originally wrote Go, Not Knowing Where! for her American grandchildren.

Leonie’s happy childhood days on her family’s sugar plantation in the Dutch East Indies colony quickly becomes the story of terror, separation and internment during World War II in Indonesian, a war area we seldom hear about. This is followed by the difficult return to Holland and readjusting to normalcy. It is her personal record based on memory and a multitude of personal letters.

Go, Not Knowing Where! is a captivating, real, and informative story about one girl’s life during the transformation of the Dutch East Indies colony into the independent country of Indonesia.

Do you also have a story worth telling? Your story might also represent a precious contribution to convey history as it was lived, just as this age-esteemer‘s has.

Bonnie Fatio

Eating Alone – With Age Esteem

I love to travel, but I do admit that it took me awhile to feel comfortable eating alone.

Usually when you are welcomed to a restaurant the person who seats you says, “Just one?” as though there is something objectionable about being alone, and that you must therefore be lonely. As a result, you do feel alone. I used to pull out a book or writing paper to seem busy. Then a friend shared this story.

She and her business partner closed a huge contract in New York. Although her partner had to fly out immediately, my friend decided to celebrate with a delicious dinner and wine at one of the top Manhattan restaurants.

When she arrived the maître d’hôtel looked down his nose at her and announced, “Ah, I see Madam is alone tonight.” My friend’s prompt reply was, “Oh, no, tonight I am with myself!”

Her story changed my outlook from eating alone, to eating “with myself”. I now savor the moment, the food, and the joy of being in my own good company.

Today at the Tampa airport the woman who greeted me asked, “A party of one?” I responded, “Yes. And it is going to be a great party!” – And it was.

Next time you eat out alone, glow with age esteem and make it a party of one.

Bonnie Fatio