Grow old on purpose. This book invites readers to navigate a purposeful path from adulthood to elderhood with choice, curiosity, and courage. Everyone is getting old; not everyone is growing old. But the path of purposeful aging is accessible to all—and it's fundamental to health, happiness, and longevity. With a focus on growing whole through developing a sense of purpose in later life, Who Do You Want to Be When You Grow Old? celebrates the experience of aging with inspiring stories, real-world practices, and provocative questions. Framed by a long conversation between two old friends, the book reconceives aging as a liberating experience that enables us to become more authentically the person we always meant to be with each passing year. In their bestseller Repacking Your Bags, Richard J. Leider and David A. Shapiro defined the good life as “living in the place you belong, with people you love, doing the right work, on purpose.” This book builds on that definition to offer a purposeful path for living well while aging well.

What kinds of women start or add to their families at this stage in life? And what are their experiences? Psychologists Julia Berryman, Karen Thorpe and Kate Windridge carried out unique international research on older mothers.

You might not be a spring chicken any more, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep on strutting your stuff! This collection of witty quotations, light-hearted yarns and cheerful jokes will help you stay young at heart, and see the funny side of getting older with a smile on your face.

Growing older is a process. Growing old is a conclusion. If you're growing older you see some hope because you have perspective and you keep learning. If you've grown old, you may cynically think that times have never been as bad as they are now, and that they can only get worse. This book is about learning how to "make peace with where you are right now." It's about learning from the past and then moving past it. It's about growing--personally, spiritually, and in our relationships with God and with others. If we think properly about growing older we'll never have to grow old.

After a few hectic - but wonderful - years, I woke up in a hospital close to my hometown in Sweden. What had happened? Only yesterday, I felt like a champion. Maybe it was my eagerness to explore the world around me that had put me here. Or maybe it was my fear of missing out on some potentially rewarding experience. Maybe I had been just a little bit too eager trying to make my dreams come true, or could my brush with death simply be a case of bad luck? There was a severe inflammation in my brain, which at times made it hard for me even to recognize my loved ones. To me, questions like 2 + 2 seemed more fitting for a rocket scientist. The doctors were deeply concerned and told me that my prognosis was very uncertain. Things certainly looked bleak, but surviving this whole ordeal was still in the cards. At the time, it made more sense to me to simply see my situation as a case of bad luck. Nonetheless, six months later and completely recovered, I realized that this was the result of something completely different. My love for life and my desire to experience as much as possible had blocked my inner signals. It was like an inner voice telling me to "Relax. Don't try to do everything at once. Stop and smell the roses." Unfortunately, I ignored this worried voice that was trying to look out for me. As I took my first stumbling steps leaving the hospital, I can still clearly remember how alert my senses truly were. Children's laughter made me feel all warm inside. The simple beauty of the sky shifting color made me stop all of a sudden in awe. Smelling the first spring flowers gave me goose bumps. The taste of fresh air being sucked into my lungs made me feel deeply relaxed and the sensation of once again experiencing life made me somewhat euphoric. I was completely present in the moment and my senses were shaper than ever before. This was the beginning of a new journey for me. I started to examine exactly what is needed to create the best possible conditions for feeling good and how we are to create the best possible lives for ourselves. Eight years later, I have now compiled my research and theories in this book. My research has led me to conclude that it is possible for each and every one of us to feel good, every day, throughout our whole lives.

For fans of David Sedaris and Nora Ephron, a humorous, irreverent, and poignant look at the gifts, stereotypes, and inevitable challenges of aging, based on award-winning journalist Steven Petrow's wildly popular New York Times essay, "Things I'll Do Differently When I Get Old." Soon after his 50th birthday, Petrow began assembling a list of “things I won’t do when I get old”—mostly a catalog of all the things he thought his then 70-something year old parents were doing wrong. That list, which included “You won’t have to shout at me that I’m deaf,” and “I won’t blame the family dog for my incontinence,” became the basis of this rousing collection of do’s and don’ts, wills and won’ts that is equal parts hilarious, honest, and practical. The fact is, we don’t want to age the way previous generations did. “Old people” hoard. They bore relatives—and strangers alike—with tales of their aches and pains. They insist on driving long after they’ve become a danger to others (and themselves). They eat dinner at 4pm. They swear they don’t need a cane or walker (and guess what happens next). They never, ever apologize. But there is another way... In Stupid Things I Won’t Do When I Get Old, Petrow candidly addresses the fears, frustrations, and stereotypes that accompany aging. He offers a blueprint for the new old age, and an understanding that aging and illness are not the same. As he writes, “I meant the list to serve as a pointed reminder—to me—to make different choices when I eventually cross the threshold to ‘old.’” Getting older is a privilege. This essential guide reveals how to do it with grace, wisdom, humor, and hope. And without hoarding. Praise for Stupid Things I Won't Do When I Get Old: “Unbelievably witty and relatable, I alternated bursting into laughter and placing my hand over my face in horror thinking, Oh my God, is that me? I often say, at this age we have something young people can never have…wisdom. My dear friend, Steven Petrow, has wisdom to share in this honest, funny, wry guide to keep us young at heart, without desperately hanging onto our youth. I am buying this book for all of my friends!” —Suzanne Somers, New York Times bestselling author of A New Way to Age “Stupid Things I Won’t Do When I Get Old is an irreverent, funny, honest look at aging and all the things we take for granted as normal parts of aging. They don’t need to be. If you struggle with getting older and want to find a fresh perspective on lessons learned about what NOT to do as we age, and what TO do to stay young in heart, spirit, mind and body, read this book.” —Mark Hyman, MD, #1 New York Times bestseller author of The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet, and Head of Strategy and Innovation at the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine. “Steven Petrow resolved to do things differently than his parents had when he gets old because he wished they’d been able to enjoy life more. His solution? He created a list! In this book, he shares the secrets to living a full life regardless of our age. It's all about the decisions we make every day. My advice in a nutshell: Read this book and keep it handy.” —“Dear Abby” (Jeanne Phillips), nationally syndicated advice columnist “It’s never too early to imagine what your life will look like as you age. And as I once wrote, ‘We are not hostages to our fate.’ Petrow’s book will help you plan, think, and redefine what it means to get older—and even laugh while doing it.” —Andrew Weil, MD, New York Times bestselling author of Spontaneous Healing and Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being “Steven Petrow not only has a great attitude about life, he is wise about how to live it. Like me, he says we should embrace our one life 100% and not let a number—our age—get in the way of anything! Steven’s book will help you rethink the word “aging” and approach this next chapter with a positive and proactive attitude. Plus, this book is fun!” —Denise Austin, renowned fitness expert, author, and columnist “Steven’s writing feels like sitting with a friend—one who is unusually gracious, warm and frank.” —Carolyn Hax, author of the nationally syndicated advice column, Carolyn Hax Praise for Steven Petrow: "Steven Petrow's Complete Gay & Lesbian Manners helps gays and straights navigate the subtleties of the same-sex world." —People "Move over, Emily Post! When it comes to etiquette for members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community—as well as their straight friends, family members and coworkers--author and journalist Steven Petrow is the authority." —TIME "What could've easily become a novelty book has emerged as an exhaustively researched, essential resource thanks to advice columnist and etiquette expert Steven Petrow." —The Advocate "From having kids to planning funerals, Steven Petrow's Complete Gay & Lesbian Manners has most facets of gay life covered. Ms. Post would approve." —Entertainment Weekly "An indispensable refresher course...on what's proper in modern...life." —Kirkus Reviews

Ageless Body, Timeless Mind goes beyond current anti-aging research and ancient mind/body wisdom to dramatically demonstrate that we do not have to grow old! Dr. Chopra shows us that, contrary to traditional beliefs, we can learn to direct the way our bodies and minds metabolize time and actually reverse the aging process -- thereby retaining vitality, creativity, memory, and self-esteem. In a unique program that includes stress reduction, dietary changes, and exercise, Dr. Chopra offers a step-by-step, individually tailored regimen for maximum living in exceptionally good health. For the young at heart, here is the most remarkable approach yet to achieving unbound physical and spiritual potential.

Author, activist, and TED speaker Ashton Applewhite has written a rousing manifesto calling for an end to discrimination and prejudice on the basis of age. In our youth obsessed culture, we’re bombarded by media images and messages about the despairs and declines of our later years. Beauty and pharmaceutical companies work overtime to convince people to purchase products that will retain their youthful appearance and vitality. Wrinkles are embarrassing. Gray hair should be colored and bald heads covered with implants. Older minds and bodies are too frail to keep up with the pace of the modern working world and olders should just step aside for the new generation. Ashton Applewhite once held these beliefs too until she realized where this prejudice comes from and the damage it does. Lively, funny, and deeply researched, This Chair Rocks traces her journey from apprehensive boomer to pro-aging radical, and in the process debunks myth after myth about late life. Explaining the roots of ageism in history and how it divides and debases, Applewhite examines how ageist stereotypes cripple the way our brains and bodies function, looks at ageism in the workplace and the bedroom, exposes the cost of the all-American myth of independence, critiques the portrayal of elders as burdens to society, describes what an all-age-friendly world would look like, and offers a rousing call to action. It’s time to create a world of age equality by making discrimination on the basis of age as unacceptable as any other kind of bias. Whether you’re older or hoping to get there, this book will shake you by the shoulders, cheer you up, make you mad, and change the way you see the rest of your life. Age pride! “Wow. This book totally rocks. It arrived on a day when I was in deep confusion and sadness about my age. Everything about it, from my invisibility to my neck. Within four or five wise, passionate pages, I had found insight, illumination, and inspiration. I never use the word empower, but this book has empowered me.” —Anne Lamott, New York Times bestselling author

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 I had only been onstage twice before I played Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. I had played a singing lion in a school play in the role of a singing lion, and I had spent my childhood performing for attention and control. #2 I had a Dorothy Moment when I was speaking in front of a group of parents, teachers, and students. I could decide what the next moment would be. I could try something new. I could go off script and give something a shot. #3 I knew I was going to be on Saturday Night Live from the very beginning. I didn’t know if I had the talent or drive, but I had a tiny little voice whispering inside of me that told me I would meet Carol Burnett someday, and that I would be okay. #4 I was so excited to go to Boston College that I wiggled in my seat as I wore my cap and gown. I was unprepared for the fact that most of the students were wealthier than me. I met prep school students who knew how to decorate their rooms with tapestries.