Angelena's Blog

"How to be Resilient"

10/3/2020

Angelena Craig October 1, 2020 I like that word, resilient, the way it rolls off my tongue. Although resiliency is not a word commonly used, the definition is closely related to the more familiar yoga-like principles of staying flexible and pliable and bending deeply.
This topic of resiliency is, in fact, becoming more popular. Just recently it has been explored with some depth in a series of published articles in The New York Times, looking at how do we build the resilience necessary to weather setbacks and navigate life’s volatility.

"Now, What Can I Say?"

7/13/2020

BOOMER TALK, a column by Angelena Craig, published in The Newburyport (MA) Daily News,
July 2020

As the deadline to submit this month's Boomer Talk column approached, I found myself stymied. What might I write that was new or interesting, inspiring, educational, motivating, and/or uplifting, all the qualities I hope for in producing this once a month, ten year column for the readers of the Newburyport Daily News? I started and stopped my writing assignment over and over again. But nothing of value came forth. Had I said everything I wanted to say before in past essays, and all that was left was just a repeat…same old, same old?

I knew what i did not want to talk about…the dismal economy, the upcoming, contentious elections, police reform and injustice, the Sahara dust cloud, the threat of rising waters, hurricane season coming at us, the daily pandemic numbers, our choices in facial masks. All that has been covered by me and everyone else and the topics of our daily conversations do not vary very much.

"When We Can't Go Out, Go In"

4/3/2020

So much has already been said about how to deal with this pandemic crisis. We have been endlessly instructed on the ways to determine if we have the virus, what to do about it, and how important is keeping physical distance so as to protect our selves and others.

While social isolation is challenging, it can be a time of reflection, of looking inward and asking ourselves some questions. What is really important, here and now, with these set of circumstances we have been dealt? How can we nourish not only our physical but our mental, and spiritual health? Can there be a positive outcome, after all is said and done?

Woodstock...nevermore

9/8/2019

BOOMER TALK
(to see more current essays, google Boomer Talk Angelena Craig)

"Woodstock…Nevermore"
Angelena Craig September 2019

"Well, I came upon a child of God. He was walking along the road. And I asked him, 'tell me, where are you going?'
This he told me,'I'm going down to Yasgur's Farm, gonna join in a rock and roll band, got to get back to the land and set my soul free.'
We are stardust, we are golden. We are billion year old carbon. And we got to get ourselves back to the garden."

The song, "Woodstock", written by Joni Mitchel, told of the event held in mid-August, fifty years ago. In 1969 half a million people came together, from all parts of the country and except for few, all from the boomer generation. A ticket for this three day "Aquarian Exposition of Peace and Music" only cost $18 and was free for those (totally unexpected) throngs coming on the second day.
Woodstock has been called "the defining moment" for our generation and represented those who rejected the traditional, establishment values. It was the largest group ever assembled for three days of fun and music, with 32 bands performing.

December 12th, 2018

12/12/2018

"Tis the Season"

BOOMER TALK DECEMBER, 2018

“Tis the season to be jolly”, this long holiday season extending from mid-November through January first. The jolly part may be thought of as feeling festive and joyful and light-hearted as we prepare for and then celebrate the special days of Thanksgiving, Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa and then finally, The New Year.

But this celebratory sense is not felt by everyone, myself included. Instead, as Thanksgiving Day came and went, I felt melancholy (a less potent word than depressed). Some of that sad feeling had to do with my family and closest friends living too far away for a get-together. And besides, having just one designated day to focus on the quality of thankfulness never made sense to me because gratitude is something I often think about each and every day.

Chasing Happiness

2/2/2018

Our nation’s Founding Fathers acknowledged “The Pursuit of Happiness” to be one of our “unalienable rights”. No, they didn’t guarantee that happiness is a right, just the pursuit of it. Most of us keep running after it, the feeling of euphoria, bliss or contentment, but only a few find lasting happiness.

The topic of happiness is very much in the news, in self-help magazines, and coming from our spiritual teachers. According to a recent article in The Week, there is “a science of happiness.” The behaviorists have been researching to find out what are the basic building blocks leading to a life of joy and contentment?

Changing Years

1/20/2018

For those who believe a new year can bring change, moving from 2017 to 2018 will be welcomed, since most of us agree that this past year has been extraordinarily tumultuous and challenging, to say the least.
We’ve seen more of Mother Nature’s roar, with terrible destruction in so many places in our own country and abroad. Some of us have experienced only minor inconveniences like short-term power outages, while countless others have witnessed, directly, entire areas extinguished by hurricanes, flooding or fires.
When you add onto this the extreme political and economic divisions within our nation, it seems “never the twain shall meet,” unity of these United States seems unlikely, and we probably will not see any kind of major change in 2018.

The Glass Ceiling

10/12/2017

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The glass ceiling is defined as that unknown yet unbreachable, informal, less-than-explicit limit and barrier that keeps women (and also minority racial groups) from rising to the upper rung of the corporate and political ladders, regardless of their qualifications or achievements. Although this term was first used in the early 1980’s as a way of recognizing women can only go just so far, it is still aptly applied today.

We can start by looking at the pay gap with women earning, on average, 82 cents to every $1 eared by men.

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Living with Uncertainty

10/7/2017

Having a sense of security is a quality we humans consider crucial for our well-being. We want to know we are physically safe, financially secure and our close relationships will never go away. We want to count on things at least staying the same as they have been or, even better, improving.

At this time in our history, many Americans are feeling anxious when we consider the state of our union. The idea of pledging allegiance to the flag, crossing our hearts while stating our commitment to “one nation, undivided and with liberty and justice for all” seems a distant dream of our fore fathers.

Each passimg day brings us the world, national and local news, causing us to feel unbalanced and, let’s face it, worried. Perhaps, as never before, we feel on shakey ground, uncertain about the instability in Washington. Will it get as serious as an impeachment? Are we moving further into the next war? With budget cuts will our health care and the education of our children be compromised? Will we lose our hard-won freedoms? How about our life savings? Could the stock market plunge? With climate change, will the rising tides and severe acts of nature (just seen in Texas) threaten our very homes?

Relaxing...into aging

4/9/2017

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As boomers, we have heard much from those in the anti-aging industry who want us to believe that if only we use certain products or buy their services, we can stop, or at least dramatically slow down, the aging process.

There are many false promises, but there is also quite a bit of truth in the statement, “If we take good care of ourselves by eating well, exercising often and relaxing the mind, we can avoid many of the challenges of getting old.”
Is it possible to shift our perspective away from anti-aging to pro-aging? Maybe that’s asking too much, but we can decide to go with, rather than resist, the arrival of those milestone years like 70 or 80 or 90. We in the boomer generation never thought we would get old, but “here we are,” at least by the age indicated on our birth certificate. The oldest of our generation can now be called septuagenarians.

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