Category Archives: aging parents
More and more stories are coming out of the Beijing Olympics highlighting the courage and resolve of the women of the world. Constantina Tomescu-Dita of Romania, a 38-year-old mother, was the triumphant gold medal winner of women’s marathon in Beijing. Four years ago in Athens she had to relinquish her dreams of an Olympic medal at mile 20 due to heat exhaustion. But even then she did not completely quit. She walked for a mile, then started running again, coming in 20th in the 2004 competition. This time she was … Continue reading
Emotional support is a major theme for Sandwiched Boomers. And today we salute the parents who are at the Beijing Olympics, watching their emerging adult children spread their wings as they compete. With 3 gold medals and 3 world records under his belt already, everyone is talking about Michael Phelps. On the Today show, his mother and sisters discussed the roller coaster ride – the ups and downs, the pressure, the racing hearts, and then the ultimate excitement. His mother described the pool as Michael’s office and knows that he’s … Continue reading
In “The Last Lecture,” Randy Pausch collected his thoughts about living a full and meaningful life so that he could pass them on to his children – and to his students, colleagues, friends, and family. Anyone who reads his book or views his last lecture can take away a number of lessons for herself as well. They range from how to achieve your childhood dreams to how to enable the dreams of others, from how to ask for what you want to how to show gratitude for what you receive. … Continue reading
In “The Last Lecture,” Randy Pausch talks about the lessons he learned from his parents about showing appreciation and about generativity. Close to the end of his life, he still felt strongly about giving back when he could and “paying it forward” when he could not. Even though he knew he was dying, he emphasized simple things like writing thank you notes and more complicated ones like expressing gratitude graciously when someone had been helpful. Randy was proud of his parents. The way they lived their lives and with their … Continue reading
