“MORE THAN ME”

“MORE THAN ME” documents former SNL cast member Jim Breuer’s cross-country comedy tour, accompanied by his 84-year-old dad. Not surprisingly, film segments featuring Breuer’s stand-up routines and the travails of weeks of touring thousands of miles by bus produce plenty of hilarious moments. What is surprising -- because it so unexpected -- is how incredibly poignant and inspiring it is to witness Breuer use humor and compassion to care for his dad as his health deteriorates. Watch the film's trailer. And then you will want to order the DVD.

HOW OLD WOULD YOU BE?

HOW OLD WOULD YOU BE? Satchel Paige famously asked, maybe rhetorically, “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?” Research suggests that most healthy adults would answer 10 to 15 years younger than their chronological age.

Coming at the question of optimal age from a different angle, consider this: Assume you are perfectly healthy and can reasonably expect to remain healthy for another 20 years, what would be your ideal age? Would you opt for the advantage of wisdom that comes with age, or the youthful opportunities to influence the unknown?

Please share your comments.

MORE THAN WE’LL EVER KNOW.

MORE THAN WE’LL EVER KNOW. There are things we know, things we don’t know, and things we don’t know we don’t know. Our formal schooling, continuing education and professional development ably cover the first two things, assuming we apply ourselves. It’s the third type of things, those which we haven’t even given a thought, that through scientific research and happenstance have the most profound influence on expanding our knowledge base.

Paradoxically, our goal should always be to be open-minded enough to acknowledge how little we really know. It was from this humble perspective that the Roman rhetorician Seneca wrote, “There will come a time when our descendants will be amazed that we did not know the things that are so plain to them.” Such as … how best to age well into the future.

WHAT’S IN A NAME: ESKATON?

WHAT’S IN A NAME: ESKATON? What do a defunct vanity record label, a neighborhood of Dhaka, Bangladesh, and a French rock band have in common?

Each shares the name “Eskaton,” the same as the aging services provider in Northern California (www.eskaton.org).

Liberally translated from ancient Greek, “Eskaton” means “dawn of a new day,” which aptly represents an organization with a vision to transform the aging experience.

As for the origin of the other uses, it might just be the alternate explanation -- that it is a cool sounding word.

LeadingAge LIVING UP TO ITS NEW NAME.

LeadingAge LIVING UP TO ITS NEW NAME. Members of the national aging services organization LeadingAge continue to demonstrate the power of community as they support one another in the wake in Hurricane Irene. Donations of staff, resources and other aid between organizations in at least 10 states along the East Coast helped coordinate responses to evacuations, resident transfers, community status hotlines and other challenges.

LeadingAge continues to document the numerous stories of social accountability amongst its community of nonprofit members; and serve as a national resource clearinghouse. (http://www.leadingage.org/hurricane.aspx)

The immediacy and selflessness of members' responses is a testament to the inspiration and leadership of LeadingAge (which recently rebranded itself from the less inspiring name, American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging.)

THE “LONGEVITY DIVIDEND.”

THE “LONGEVITY DIVIDEND.” You’ll be hearing more about this benefit of aging in the coming years. According to Dr. Robert N. Butler, the science of aging has the potential to produce social, health and economic benefits for individuals and society.

Besides the obvious individual benefits of living longer in better health, consider that people will remain in the workforce longer, personal income will increase, and age-related entitlement programs will face less pressure.

The extraordinary accomplishment of extending life expectancy offers more rewards than burdens if we embrace and “exploit” this inevitability.

Learn more, read Longevity Rules: How to Age Well Into the Future. Order online at www.amazon.com.

“DAWN OF A NEW DAY.”

“DAWN OF A NEW DAY.” Eskaton’s new Memory Care program advocates a comparatively unique principle and practice in its care of older adults with dementia and Alzheimer’s. Focus on today and tomorrow, on making new memories. Even if they are fleeting. Residents are encouraged to be forward thinking – to appreciate the present and anticipate the future.

And all the wonderful past memories, their intrinsic value is embraced as well. They generate smiles and respect and empathy and, perhaps most importantly, are used by caregivers to help residents navigate their fogginess and frustrations. Live each new day to its fullest, with dignity and self-worth … carpe diem.

How appropriate that translated from Greek, the name “Eskaton” means “dawn of a new day.”

Learn more at www.eskaton.org.

"AGING" IS AN ACTIVE VERB

“AGING” IS AN ACTIVE VERB, positive and all-inclusive process, and not a label to be placed old and frail adults. With aging, perception can literally become reality.

According to a Yale University research study, individuals who maintain a positive outlook about growing older live on average 7.5 years longer than those who do not – a bigger increase than associated with exercising or not smoking. At Eskaton, we say the “Everyone is aging. Some of us just have more experience.”          

Learn more at www.eskaton.org or www.aging.org.

IS “SOCIAL MEDIA” FOR TOOLS?

IS “SOCIAL MEDIA” FOR TOOLS? The term “social media,” which at its most relevant is simply shorthand for a new toolbox of digital forums and formats, is becoming an annoying cliché. For two reasons: 1) An army of self-described experts and consultants are hawking their services as if the application itself was more important than the content (like being so proud of your beautiful invitation for a party that no one attends); and 2) It is a pedestrian, generic term. In the nineties catchphrase was “social marketing,” which was really just a trendy name for public-interest campaigns or traditional public relations. “Social media” is not more than the sum of its parts, rather it a bunch of unique parts or tools that work for users with varying degrees of efficiency. Quality public relations, advertising and marketing produce results. Use of “social media” is for tools …

DÉJÀ VU, AMNESIA, OR BOTH?

DÉJÀ VU, AMNESIA, OR BOTH? Which would you choose: to experience the greatest moment of your life and then have the memory completely disappear; or have an extraordinary moment, one that you actually never experienced, implanted in your memory? Memory can be an extraordinarily complex process … and can collapse like a house of cards in the mind of Alzheimer’s sufferers. It could be described as déjà vu and amnesia happening at the same time. Refresh your memory.

image by Andrea Levy, reprinted from Cleveland Plain Dealer

FRIENDS FOR LIFE.

FRIENDS FOR LIFE. It takes just minutes for the visiting first-graders from Twin Rivers USD to become comfortable with their new “buddies” who live in Eskaton’s assisted living lodges and care centers.

Eskaton’s Kids Connection is the centerpiece of the organization’s initiative to promote intergenerational living, learning and mutual respect. Each school year hundreds of local elementary schoolchildren partner up with their new friends – some 15 times their age – to read stories, celebrate holidays, work on art projects, Skype and simply enjoy one another’s company.

The accompanying pictures are worth a thousand words, but to experience the genuine caring first-hand is priceless.

Learn more about Eskaton's Kids Connection.

DON’T CALL US “GEEZERS.”

DON’T CALL US “GEEZERS.” According to a national survey of 100 journalists who cover aging related issues, “older adults” is the preferred term to describe people in later life -- individuals otherwise known as senior citizens, seniors, the aging or aged, elderly, geezers, old-timers, over-the-hill, old farts.

Some of these terms are generational. “Seniors” is acceptable to most of the Silent Generation, less so to the Boomer Generation. But “aged” and some of the others are simply, sadly ageist. Older adult qualifies an individual’s age (as compared to a younger adult), rather than placing a label on him or her – especially one that infers a negative stereotype such as frailty or senility.

Aging is an all-inclusive process. Everyone is aging; some of us (older adults) just have more experience than others. Read Media Takes: On Aging to learn more. Order from Aging Services of California or the International Longevity Center.

“THRILL OF A LIFETIME.”

"THRILL OF A LIFETIME." The great thing about a “thrill of a lifetime”: It is ageless. The ultimate, life-enriching experience can be grandiose or deeply personal. Regardless, each thrill generates anticipation, excitement, satisfaction and great memories.

Eskaton’s Thrill of a Lifetime initiative fulfills about two-dozen thrills a year for its residents. Harriet Antonides became a Girl Scout on her 100th birthday. April Smith went whitewater rafting. Mino Ohye was reunited with his brother in Japan from whom he was separated during WWII.

Find more Thrills and smiles at http://www.eskaton.org./

 

CAUSE MARKETING’S GOLDEN RULE.

CAUSE MARKETING’S GOLDEN RULE. “Do for others as you would have them do for you.” The Golden Rule. Profoundly simple, yet as difficult to follow as the speed limit or a Charlie Kauffman film. The success of most all public-service campaigns and cause marketing endeavors comes down to how effectively they generate empathy. And not from those of like mind, but from the rest of us who don’t think we have a vested interest in the cure or solution or benefits.

About preventing criminal behavior, the ancient Greek philosopher Solon eloquently warned, “There can be no justice until those of us who are unaffected by crime become as indignant as those who are.”

Advice for public relations professionals, use the “science of artful communication” to make The Golden Rule relevant and contemporary.

ESKATON IS A “BLUE ZONE.”

ESKATON IS A “BLUE ZONE.” Northern Californians could be closer than most to discovering the secret to longevity. “Blue Zone” is the term a National Geographic explorer Dan Buettner uses to describe a handful of aging-friendly locations around the world. These are places where inhabitants live longer, healthier … and happier.

One village of 2,500 in Sardinia, for example, has four centenarians – “a staggering number, given that the ratio of centenarians in the U.S. is roughly one per 5,000,” Buettner notes.

Impressed? Then consider this: Among its 3,500 residents Eskaton boasts at least three-dozen people 100-years of age and older, which makes the ratio of centenarians within Eskaton’s “Blue Zone” 50 times greater than in the general population.

Celebrate Eskaton’s 100+ at http://www.eskaton.org./