Aging Well in the Gorge ~ November 29th, 2023

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving whether gathering around the dining room table with friends and family, celebrating with others at a Community Thanksgiving Dinner, or enjoying a home-delivered turkey dinner.

Now as we’ve entered the holiday season, it’s a good time to slow down, take a deep breath, and just offer that simple prayer – “Thank you”. Thank you for the many blessings that are visible, but often out of focus as we are distracted by all the daily noise and our own self-absorption.

Thankful for our friends and family who are still with us and for the comforting memories of those we have lost. Thankful for the neighbors who keep an eye on us and offer help even when we think we can do it ourselves. And thankful that each morning we can wake up, touch our feet to the floor, and start a new day – although I’ve found it takes a while to loosen up the old joints.

And maybe we should also be thankful for our misfortunes that remind us not to take anything for granted and to cherish each day – knowing that in a flash our lives could turn upside down.

This holiday season is a time to appreciate and savor our blessings, and ask ourselves the question Charlie Brown posed “What if, today, we were grateful for everything?”

Since choosing the right plan during Medicare Open Enrollment is an important once-a-year decision, here’s just a reminder that Open Enrollment ends on December 7th, so you still have time to determine if your Medicare plan is the best option for you. To help decide, review your plan’s “Annual Notice of Change” (ANOC) and ask yourself three questions. 1.) Does my plan allow me to go to the providers I want, including my pharmacy? 2.) Are my prescription drugs covered? 3.) How much does the plan cost?

You can compare plans by visiting www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan; studying the “Medicare & You” handbook you received in the mail; or calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) where help is available 24/7. For in-person help, you can schedule an appointment with a SHIBA volunteer counselor. In Oregon call 541-288-8341, Goldendale 509-773-3757, White Salmon 509-493-3068, and in Stevenson call 509-427-3990.

Brain Tease: How about a little fun deciphering these common Christmas Carols?

1.) Happiness to the Global Ecosystem; 2.) Small male percussionist; 3.) I am experiencing nocturnal visions of a colorless holiday; 4.) Festoon the Corridors; 5.) A Non-summer fairytale area; 6.) Oh holiday conifer; 7.) Ten plus two twenty-four-hour periods of holiday festivity; 8.) Hey tiny city in Israel; 9.) In a remote location in a barn stall

The actor who played Charles Lindberg in the 1957 aviation biography film, The Spirit of St. Louis and had a lifelong passion for aviation was Jimmy Stewart. I received correct answers from Ron Nelson, Bruce Johnson, Judy Kiser, Rebecca Abrams, Kim Birge, Deborah Medina, and Dave Lutgens this week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket.

I remember my mother going to the grocery store and collecting these trading stamps which I would lick and paste into 24-page collector books which she would redeem for different products. For this week’s “Remember When” question, what is the name of this line of trading stamps founded in 1896 by Thomas Sperry and Shelley Byron Hutchinson? Email your answer to www.mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-296-4788, or send it with one of the 35 million catalogs distributed each year during the 1960s.

Well, it’s been another week, and once again completing only half of my to-do list. Until we meet again, as Danny Kaye once said, “Life is a great big canvas and you should throw all the paint on it you can.”

“What’s wrong with knowing what you know now and not knowing what you don’t know until later?” – Winnie the Pooh

Nutritious home-delivered and in-person meals are available at noon Monday through Friday unless otherwise noted.

Seniors of Mosier Valley (541-980-1157) – Mondays and Wednesdays; Mt. Hood Townhall (541-308-5997) – Tuesdays; Hood River Valley Adult Center (541-386-2060); Sherman County Senior and Community Center (541-565-3191); The Dalles Meals-on-Wheels (541-298-8333).

For meal sites in Washington, call Klickitat County Senior Services: Goldendale office (509-773-3757) or the White Salmon office (509-493-3068), and in Skamania County call Senior Services (509-427-3990).

Answers for this week:

1.) Joy to the World; 2.) Little Drummer Boy; 3.) I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas; 4.) Deck the Halls; 5.) Winter Wonderland; 6.) Oh Christmas Tree; 7.) 12 Days of Christmas; 8.) Oh Little Town of Bethlehem; 9.) Away in a Manger.

And here are the answers for those who didn’t decipher last week’s quotes.

“An optimist is a person who starts a new diet on Thanksgiving Day.”

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”

Aging Well in the Gorge ~ November 22nd, 2023

Well, it’s the beginning of the holiday season when we enjoy the company of family – and gain seven pounds before the start of the New Year. But while visiting with parents, children, grandchildren, or all three, it can be difficult navigating around and through past hurts and slights brought to family gatherings along with gifts and holiday treats.

However, to help avoid the traps and difficulties often encountered at family gatherings, I found this advice from the website Next Avenue (http://www.nextavenue.org/), a nonprofit, online publication for people over fifty produced by Twin Cities PBS.

First, bury the hatchet (and although tempted – not in someone’s back!). You may not forget past wrongs but try to maintain a spirit of forgiveness.

Second, keep your mouth shut! Well, not exactly. But hold your tongue – even when they have it all wrong! Follow the advice of Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet and philosopher, who suggested before you speak let your words pass through three gates. “At the first gate, ask yourself, ‘Is it true?’ At the second ask, ‘Is it necessary?’ At the third gate ask, ‘Is it kind?’”

Third, simplify and reduce stress. Don’t be totally worn out when guests arrive. Determine ahead of time what is essential and what is not. And consider skipping what is not.

Fourth, sneak in a few breaks to relax before, during, and after the gathering.

Fifth, reinvent your traditions. Find a new location for the gathering. Or go as a family to help volunteer at a community event. Think outside the turkey roll.

Sixth, rethink your gift-giving. Donate on behalf of your loved one to a non-profit. Or give “experience” gifts: tickets to the theater or a gift card to a restaurant they would not normally visit. As Jana Webb once told me, “I don’t need more things!”

Families are our support system in times of hardship and adversity; our connections to the past and future. And when families are so scattered and often disconnected, being together is a special time to be enjoyed and treasured.

One of the strengths of our communities is our local businesses, and many small retail businesses depend on the holiday season. By shopping locally, you not only support those businesses, but you can ask questions in person; see what you’re buying – avoiding “It looked so different online!”; and discover those unique special gifts. So, during this holiday season don’t forget to shop local!

Brain Tease: Last week you identified the names of animals without the vowels. This week, see if you can read the following Thanksgiving quotes also without the vowels.

“A_ _pt_m_st _ s _ p_rs_n wh_ st_rts _ n_w d_ _ t _n Th_nksg_v_ng D_y.” Irv Kupcinet

“F- – ling gr- t-t-d- -nd n-t -xpr-ss-ng -t -s l-k- wr-pp-ng – pr-s-nt -nd n-t g-v-ng -t.” William Arthur Ward

The broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981, and who ended his news program with the words, “And that’s the way it is” was Walter Cronkite. I received correct answers from Ron Nelson, Nancy Higgins, Stephen Woolpert, Jay Waterbury, Jess Birge, Dave Lutgens, Lana Tepfer, Eva Summers, Donna Mollet, Rhonda Spies, Keith Clymer, Diana Weston, Doug Nelson, Bruce Johnson, Deborah Medina, and Katherine Schlick Noe this week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket. And last week I missed Rebecca Abrams and Lana Tepfer.

In 1927 Charles Lindberg, while flying alone, made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, becoming a national hero. For this week’s “Remember When” question, who was the actor who played Charles Lindberg in the 1957 aviation biography film The Spirit of St. Louis, and who said Lindbergh’s famous flight was among the most significant events of his youth? Email your answer to www.mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-296-4788, or send it with a U.S. “Lindbergh Air Mail” Postage Stamp issued on June 11, 1927.

Well, it’s been another week, trying to make it work without reading the instructions. Until we meet again, have a wonderful Thanksgiving – and make sure you don’t spill the gravy!

“To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.” Johannes A. Gaertner

Nutritious home-delivered and in-person meals are available at noon Monday through Friday unless otherwise noted.

Seniors of Mosier Valley (541-980-1157) – Mondays and Wednesdays; Mt. Hood Townhall (541-308-5997) – Tuesdays; Hood River Valley Adult Center (541-386-2060); Sherman County Senior and Community Center (541-565-3191); The Dalles Meals-on-Wheels (541-298-8333).

For meal sites in Washington, call Klickitat County Senior Services: Goldendale office (509-773-3757) or the White Salmon office (509-493-3068), and in Skamania County call Senior Services (509-427-3990).

Answer: If you couldn’t read the two Thanksgiving quotes, I’ll share them with you next week.