One of my favorite quotes by Light Worker Paxton Robey is, “There is nothing outside of us but a mirror.” And if you’ve ever delved into the study of our minds and something as basic as how we see things via those instruments we call eyeballs that sit in the front of our face and relay messages back to the computer we call our brains, the easier it is to see the point of view that really all that we see, hear and experience outside of ourselves (whatever ourself is) is simply reflections back to ourselves of what we are experiencing.

So, gentle reader, why on Earth would I begin an article entitled, “Our Elderly: The Last Unappreciated Frontier?” with a paragraph about brains and mirror reflections?  Because as my brain sees and interprets how much of humanity–at least the culture in which I live today—views the elderly either not all, or, if at all, in a very shallow insipid low waters of perception along the shoreline of our thinking and feeling minds.  Our elderly really are an untapped gold mine just waiting for us to see beyond the mirror reflections of our beliefs (or disbeliefs).

Let me ask you to consider this, according to www.usgs.gov up to 60% of the human adult body is water.  Can you imagine that we silly humans spend so much time worried, fearful, concerned, fretting, and anxious about how the outside surface (skin) of the vessel we call our body (which is more than half composed of water) looks that we turn away and dismiss that last unappreciated frontier of humanity which is full of wisdom, perspective, humor, stories, love, answers, ideas and more. In fact, for many of us, exploring that frontier could be as simple as having a conversation with the next elderly person who crosses your path and being curious about what you may discover.

Thought for the day:  What prejudices, judgements and beliefs might you harbor way down below that is preventing you from surfacing the overflow of wealth from the elderly in your world?

Helpful Hint for being human: We’re ALL going to be part of the elderly someday (unless we check out before hand). Can you imagine how fulfilling it would/will be too be not only respected, honored and appreciated for living a life well-done but to be asked to give our every last drop of experience to help others coming up behind us on their life path.

Most of us probably believe we at least know what our opinions are about most things in life and also feel pretty confident about how we see things.  Yet, if you’re like me, given the right circumstances you might find out that you don’t know more than you realized you didn’t know.  How does that saying go from college philosophy classes,  something along the lines of “we know what we know” and maybe “we know what we don’t know” but only if we’re really paying attention will “we not know what we don’t know.”

You can imagine my amazement while working on a social media evaluation project to discover that I have many more definite opinions than I realized.  Perhaps this opportunity revealed itself because in this project instead of weaving through various social media only to land upon that which really sparks my interest I am required to spend time on each post and to evaluate them.  For example, because I am such a huge animal lover and nature lover you would think (I certainly did!) that I would want to watch or read every video or post that had animals involved wouldn’t you?  As it turns out, that part of me that is all about justice really has some definite opinions about what type of animal videos, memes, jpgs are out there and specifically what is okay and what is not. Like a video going around that shows a mama giraffe giving birth in the zoo with all the people on the other side of her cage watching her walk around with her baby’s hooves sticking out and even a zookeeper following her with a video camera as she goes through the birthing process.  It is true that if I happened upon the same situation whilst on an African Safari (photography of course) and I could observe a giraffe giving birth like this without being obvious (think Jane Goodall) I would watch and be fascinated but this incident struck me as being particularly garish since this normally wild beast was imprisoned and because it was surrounded by predators (yes dear people, in the wild, certainly around such a vulnerable time we would be considered predators I’m almost certain) the video was painful to even just see the still of what it was without even viewing the content.

Thought for the Day: Wonder if something like social media, which many of us may judge to be just hitting the surface of life, when looked upon more deeply can help us to learn unexpected things about ourselves and others?

Helpful Hints for Being Human: It’s a good thing for us to open up our minds and hearts for new information about ourselves and others because it’s possible that there may be a whole lot out there that we don’t know that we don’t know!

A good friend’s father passed away yesterday at the well-lived age of 90.  Ever since her mom’s passing a couple of years ago her father has been “ready to leave this mortal coil.”  He was a good kind man who was loved very much by his daughter and their family. I will always remember her birthday party from a handful of years ago when her Dad and significant other conspired to create a birdhouse painting party. Her father made several simple yet lovely birdhouses for the party participants to decorate and paint which my friend then hung all throughout their xeriscaped gardens.

Out of respect and general agreement for her father’s wishes there will be no funeral or memorial service.  Somehow this makes me feel a little bit closer to her Dad because although he was such a gentle soul he was also a practical soul and after seeing what his family went through with his wife’s passing he did not want to impose more on them then absolutely necessary with his passing.  Sure, if they want to have a remembrance of him during the burgeoning and budding of spring in their garden with the swapping of stories full of wisdom and humor that was fine with him but nothing that cost them money or angst.

Thought for the Day:  Since birthing, dying and death are all part of the process of life why not discuss these things when we’re coherent and can get clarity about what we think and believe with each other before a stressful experience.  There’s nothing as gratifying for loved ones who are in mourning as the ease of finding important documents and the clear understanding of your wishes to say the least about having faced, embraced, discarded or amended core beliefs well before the end.

Helpful Hint for Being Human: We ALL experience being born, living and dying so why shy away from what the here and now and what the great beyond means to us now? There is, after all, no time like the present.

Hello! It’s been awhile since I’ve written in this spot.   Welcome back as we enter the year 2015.  Yesterday I committed with fellow writer Cyndi Hughes that I’d start this blog up again and write every day for the next 365 days.

Because I’m on the thick part of the tail end of the Boomers my perspective will be that of a Baby Boomer but really I’m writing to YOU, dear reader, that unique part of you who sees the wry sometimes unsettling part of being human in all its messy beautiful awkwardness.  So let’s gather around, warm our hands by the fire and get started.  I would love to hear from you so please do share your insights, comments, humor, wisdom and musings!   

Thought for the day:  There seems to be several writer friends who have been swimming around in various social media pools for a few years and are sick, sick, sick of it!  Are you? What are you noticing or experiencing?  A few of the digital publicists I know are tired of the b.s. of it all. They are burnt out from working with clients, especially the ones who tout themselves as being spiritual leaders for a better humanity, who (in real life) act like complete and total dicks to everyone around them (family, friends and employees).

Helpful Hint for Being Human: Don’t believe everyone’s B.S. and definitely don’t believe in your own!  There is one part of me that takes comfort in the fact that “we are all connected” and then another that likes being unique from others which means I have to somehow accept that I am just one of many unique beings.  The comfort I can take from this is that although we humans can sometimes be apathetic and indifferent en masse when we choose to shake ourselves awake we can use our unique perspective to take a look around and choose how we want to experience life.

One of the most difficult things to remember when you suffer from the blues now and again or full-blown depression is that there really will be sunshine after the storm.   Part of the insidiousness of experiencing the tarry black hole of despair is that, when in the midst of it, we’re convinced that this is the way our life is, the way our life has always been and the way our life will always be.

Repeat after me:  This is NOT the way it has ALWAYS been, this is NOT the way it will ALWAYS be and there REALLY WILL BE  SUNSHINE AFTER THE STORM.

Repeat as necessary.

  If you’ve read my blogs, you know that some of the tools that I’ve created and include in my trusty tool box of “having the life I truly want” may only be found in my tool box…so I share them with you to inspire you to take, use, re-design and/or create a totally new tool for yourself.

One such tool is to get really angry at the inky black despair that has slowly filled in the edges of my life.  Eventually, somehow, that anger attracts humor which births my own personal form of really dark humor. Might not be appreciated much by  Mother Theresa, but it does manage to help me break into the main shaft of the catacombs of my depression to begin the trek towards the light.

It must of been during one of these dank episodes that a fellow traveler of life coined the phrase “Really?!?!?”.   Saying, “really?!” feels so app when you’re simmering your anger within a broth of blue and begin noticing just how many ingredients it took to make up this stew that you’re in.  I’ve had moments in this midst that I have actually felt burbling laughs of glee because I so couldn’t wait to share with another just how crappy “life was being to me.”   The crux of the mix is when I realize that I had contributed much with my salty perspective.  I’ve found separating the good-Lynn from the blue-Lynn is advantageous at this time.  Call it denial, call it irresponsible but being able to put the blame of my tainted musings on an inanimate object such as “the depression” or “the blues” enables me to sniff out more absurdities of perspective rather than layer blame upon blame on myself.

As I write this blog I can feel the clouds circling my brain sprinkling out reminders of financial insecurity, aging, etc. and so if I take a tip from myself and go into the eye of the storm before it even sets into motion, I can already see some of the absurdities of how I respond to life uprooting themselves for viewing and pleasure.  For example, this weekend my young neighbors came to our door asking for help concerning a beautiful, starved Labrador Dog that a friend had rescued.  In the course of meeting the dog, I learned that our neighbor family had suffered from “foot-mouth” disease over the past month.  Just the mere mention of fever blisters was enough for my lips to begin tingling and popping forth with a set for each side of my mouth of one of the banes of existence that has not darkened the shores of my lips for at least a year.  I could pile this reality on to the reality of looking for a steady income and really just nose dive into a fetal position but instead will relish the absurdity of it all!

For you see dear beloved ones I really do believe there will be sunshine after the storm(s)!

It’s a wonder any of us ever actually choose to get married, much less decide that we’re in love with another person and want to have a relationship with them.  Let’s face it, according to a  2011 Pew Research marriage survey, marriage is at an all time low in America at 51% of adults getting married. Pew goes on to say that,   Having a successful marriage is “one of the most important things” in life for 36% of adults, according to a 2011 Pew Research survey. An additional 48% said it is “very important but not the most” important.”

Later this afternoon, I’ll be interviewing Marcia “Naomi” Berger who is known globally as the Marriage Maven, about her latest book, “Marriage Meetings for lasting love: 30 Minutes a Week to the Relationship You’ve Always Wanted” on BTR’s Hope42Day.    When the publicist first sent me Naomi’s book I was at once interested to have a guest who could offer tools to my listeners about having a good marriage but also hesitant because “I’ve already been there and done that…hasn’t everybody?”

But, no, not all of us have created a vehicle that cultivates and supports a loving marriage for the long haul. That’s why many of us are still Googling to find the answers and why my friend and fellow web radio host Psychic Tee has a clamoring of listeners calling in to her shows, especially when she offers advice and readings about love and marriage.

For the record, there should be a special award given to my husband for sticking it out with me as we muddled through the first decade of our marriage.  Along the way we learned to remember not to take each other for granted and not to throw things at each other (physically or verbally).  24 years later, we have found lots of ways to enjoy each other and be grateful for our time.  Thankfully, we’ve always seemed to find ways to make each other laugh. For example, I wish I could secretly take a video of David dancing to the theme song from the TV Show Castle (which he does every time we watch it and makes me laugh every time) but you’ll just have to click on the hyperlinked Castle and imagine it for yourself.

Listen to what Marriage Maven Naomi Berger has to say about Marriage Meetings  and keep in mind, all good things come to those with patience and the willingness to work on themselves!

Even though I’ve sung a lot in my life including singing duets and rounds with my brother, Howdy, who, although currently is the President of a popular men’s choral group in Jacksonville, FL called “Big Orange chorus” has been singing pretty much all his life, it’s only been in the last few weeks that I had the realization of just how sensitive I am to the sound of people’s voices.

My brother Howdy is on the left and his son, my nephew, Howdy III is on the far right

Two recent incidents come to mind.  I won’t link you to either one for sake of anonymity for  the people involved so perhaps you can take my realization and apply it to your own interactions and see what you hear in the voices in your daily life.  The first example is a female DJ who I would guess is in her 30’s. Her voice grates on my nerves and she has never done anything in her DJ duties that has ever indicated that she is anything but the nicest of humans.  But I hear in her voice an ego and almost a self-assured mocking  that incites me to want to knock her off her block.  I have no idea if my judgement from listening to her voice is correct; however, I do realize that just her voice sets my nerves on edge.

The second example is a person who I dearly love who has only recently found the inner strength to stand up on their own two feet and declare their place in the world.  When this person talks, their voice sounds as if there might be polyps on their vocal chords. And there might be, I don’t know, but what I’m basing the sound of their voice on is that when this person speaks their voice flows for just the first sentence or two and then their voice sounds as if their words are being funneled through a cheese grater. The voice seems to stop flowing the minute this person realizes they feel insecure and are being heard!

I’ve written before about “toning” with your voice for healing.  I am by no means a professional “toner”, but I have found toning to really help me. Especially if I am stuck and/or can’t quite put my finger on what I am feeling.  When I first began, I used to sit crossed legged in our guest room and let out sounds from low notes to high notes moving my voice/sound from my root chakra and on upwards to the highest note I could sound out.  I could actually feel when my voice/sound would catch where the feeling was stuck and then I’d focus on those notes until the notes became unstuck. Be careful when doing this around a cat or dog friend who is well-connected to you.  My cat Data used to run across the room when I began toning, run up my lap and touch my lips with her paw (sheathed of course!).

We humans are such animals!! I believe the more we accept this about ourselves, the more we can recognize and learn about the natural gifts we have inside.  I mean, it makes sense to me that our hearing can work for us well beyond just hearing the sound.  I remember when I began working in the fast-paced publishing environment “hearing” the shhh-shhh sound of some of the words that the Texan Ad execs (specifically the men) would pepper throughout their conversation with others, especially when they were trying to make a sale.  There was a sound in their voices that would often conjure up images of fine leather plush seats, smooth whiskey poured neat and potent cigar or pipe smoke wafting up and around a bent cowboy hat.

Maybe my sensitivity to voice is one of the reasons that I don’t like to listen to myself in interviews because I can “hear” what I was feeling and more times than not, I really prefer not to be that obvious!

And of course what is my favorite DJ on KUTX.org, John Aillee playing right now as I am blogging about voice and toning?? None other than the wonderful Craig Hella Johnson’s Conspirare singing Joby Talbot’s “Path of Miracles” which starts off with what sounds like Toning and/or Trance Singing!  Love it when everything moves in sync!  Makes me believe I’m right on target writing about the voice.

So…..why don’t you play with this?  If not with your own voice then wake up to the sounds in the voices all around you.  What are the sounds of life telling you?

I laugh at myself a lot.  Bless my little heart.  I must have made a really strong pact with the Universe to be authentic because it seems like it doesn’t give me one inch to fake it til I make it most of the time.  Take my car (no, please, really take it!) it’s a good little car considering it was born in 1999 and has over 189K miles on it. And it is sporty with a little engine that always does.  But the convertible top has had to be replaced and bless their little hearts, my husband and brother replaced the top themselves (original DIY!) leaving just enough of a gap in one side where the top connects to the windshield that when it rains, drops get in and collect.  The first morning after a rain when I realized this, I was backing up our driveway headed to a coaching appointment and the inside of my car sounded like I was at the beach with the waves gently wafting on the beach.   But I wasn’t at the beach, I was in Austin, Texas and so I looked down at my floorboard to discover that over an inch of water had collected in the floorboard of my car.

Of course, I chose to keep my coaching appointment and so on the 20 minute drive had the opportunity to not let the crazy reality of driving up in a car full of water effect the delivery of career coaching for the client.  She never knew!

This morning as I sit in my pjs keeping my commitment to daily blogging for this year, I’m reminded that many of us are in similar disparate situations.  Especially us writers who work from our home offices.  Somewhere in here there’s a mirror image of how we act outwardly differently then we feel inside and in most professional instances, that is good.  Even so, it’s important for us to remember to acknowledge what it is that we’re feeling inside too and not let it get lost.  One of my good friends, I’ll call her “N”, exposed her daily wearing of pajama jeans to her blog readers during a time of intense depression and change after a divorce.  I don’t have the stats to support how much pajama jeans stocks went up after N’s sharing, but I’m betting they did.  Who wouldn’t want to be comfy and look good without notice when going through a dark period of their lives?! A whole lot of us!  And we were all grateful that N had the courage to let us know about her find and her process through the mucky part of her life.

Not sure how I’ll be able to weave the broken zippered sweat shirt jacket that I’m wearing over my pjs this morning, but I know I will and that sharing this part of who I am keeps me humble (and cuts down on the wear and tear of my good clothes too!).  Don’t hate me because I’m comfortable!

And the Universe continues to laugh at and with me! After decades of being shown in numerous ways that I am but “one of many”, yet wanting so badly to be considered awesomely unique,  I find myself smack dab in the middle of the baby boomer generation.  I’ve survived and thrived in life just long enough to know how to turn a fact that I have to accept, into a palatable form, by re-defining definitions to suit my mind and heart.  For instance, yes I am a baby boomer and yes, I am right in the middle of the generation AND we are a generation of all kinds of unique minds and hearts.  The older I get, the more I find this definition to be true.

I believe that many of us baby boomers also think (and would secretly be like) the Millennial Generation if we were brave enough to let ourselves be ourselves.  Like Jenny Lawson, The Bloggess, for example.  Jenny didn’t grow up with the likes of Emily Post or Miss  Manners breathing down her neck like most of us BBs (though I think Jenny would appreciate Miss Manners for her snide wit) so one/we could say that she is automatically freer to say and be who she is BUT if truth be told, I think many of us bbs would be just as outspoken as Jenny if fear wasn’t part of the DNA sequence of our generation.  This blog for this year (Raving Boomer) is my attempt to break through our BB structure and be a voice in the wind for us all….like Abbie did for many of us before our thirties.

In my younger days, I always felt so different from everybody else and then I discovered that a.) most of us felt or feel different from everybody else and b.) in some of the situations that I found myself in like a conservative boarding school that was military for the guys—I was indeed very different from everybody else!  If I was good at math or at least statistics I’d be able to whip out some stats that support the sheer number of people in my generation that all feel different, but since I’m not good at math (but believe EVERYTHING can be explained mathematically) I’ll just leave it to you, the reader, to decide if you relate to what I blog about.  And please jump in with your two cents if for no other reason then to encourage me to show more of my skin!