When planning our summer vacation, we had four criteria. We wanted somewhere we could escape the miserable heat in Montpellier. The place also had to be affordable. (That ruled out the French Riviera.) It also had to be reachable by car and plane. Lastly, we wanted a site located on or near the water. Póvoa de Varzim in Portugal met all four criteria. I could take a short flight direct from Carcassonne, France, to Porto, Portugal. From there, Póvoa de Varzim was barely 20 minutes away. I planned to meet up with my extended family (my son, his wife, and my grandson), who would leave ahead of me by car and take a few days to camp along the way.

Bette Davis is credited with saying, “Getting old is not for sissies.” Her statement implies that aging is a tough process. Is she right? On the other hand, Cicero said, “Old age is the crown of life: the final act in the play of life.” Perhaps this crown weighs heavily on our heads because my experience and that of my friends is that aging is challenging to navigate. Health Problems and Losses Historically, getting old was mainly associated with a series of depressing losses. Mobility, energy, physical strength, and mental acuity losses were high on the list. So was the loss of good health from common age-related illnesses, such as arthritis, hearing loss, and vision changes. Dementia, diabetes, cancer, strokes,

Before moving to France, I studied French using Duolingo, a free online application that teaches dozens of languages. I tried to practice twenty minutes daily but didn’t always meet my goal. Still, I had learned a bit about nouns, grammar, pronouns, and verbs when I arrived three years ago. I probably spoke at the level of a preschooler, always in the present tense because I hadn’t memorized any other verb tenses. As a result of my studies, I could read basic French reasonably well. However, I had a hard time understanding the spoken language. When French people speak, words slide into one another (the term is “elision”), and I could not distinguish one word from the next. In addition, the

Humans are strange creatures. Sometimes we imagine hearing something outside ourselves that no one else can hear. This makes us seem crazy. Sometimes the voice that others cannot hear comes from within us, which can also make us seem crazy. Or the inner voice can make us seem normal. It all depends. Imagined Sounds from Outside About one in ten people hear voices or sounds that others can’t, like a person talking or a police siren blaring. These are called auditory hallucinations. The voices may talk about the listener or to the listener, making positive or negative statements. The only certainty we have is that everything is impermanent and constantly changing. A Zen proverb captures this situation: “Life is change,

“Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change” is a quote attributed to Stephen Hawking. And even if he didn’t say it, the quote is consistent with his insight into the nature of intelligence. The only certainty we have is that everything is impermanent and constantly changing. A Zen proverb captures this situation: “Life is change, change is stability.” Emulate Anchored Buoys How should a person respond to this reality? Perhaps we should emulate anchored buoys. Wind and currents move them around, but they keep their position. A friend of mine had this buoyant quality. The events of his life—for example, getting fired from his job, business failures, divorce, and financial hardships—moved him up and down in turbulent waters, but

Are you tired of being tired? Clearly, living joyfully is impossible when you’re dragging. But how do you find more energy? Kill off all energy vampires! Since vampires love the dark, let’s shine a light on the predators. Vampires love darkness and hate sunshine Your “Energy Envelope” Each of us starts our day operating within an “energy envelope,” a term researchers use to describe the body’s finite available energy. They’ve found that individuals who spend no more energy than they have available enjoy better health and a better quality of life. In contrast, individuals who regularly overspend their energy supply end up with medical issues, including ongoing fatigue. The Size of Our Envelope The size of our energy envelope is