"So Wise Were Our Elders"

Author: John Holmes McDowell

Publisher: University Press of Kentucky

Published: 2014-07-15

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 0813155665

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"So wise were our elders!" Thus exclaims Mariano Chicunque, himself an elder, expressing in a single phrase the thrust of the mythic narrative tradition he simultaneously presents and represents in his storytelling. A remarkable body of mythology is documented for the first time in this volume. John Homes McDowell's study revolves around thirty-two mythic narratives of the Kamsá Indians who live in the Sibundoy Valley of the Colombian Andes, collected by the author from several renowned Kamsá storytellers. Each myth is given in the native language with parallel English translations that seek to capture the flavor of the original performances. Textual annotation and commentary assess the grounding of the myths in the language and culture of the Kamsá indigenous community. Introductory chapters describe the process of transcription and translation and highlight important characteristics of the collection. McDowell stresses the collaborative nature of the enterprise, which benefits from the shared vision of the ethnographer and of indigenous consultants who were involved in every step of the process. The narratives are portrayed as a residual mythology in transit toward folktale but still evocative of a traditional cosmos. The myths are much more than inert "literary" objects, and under McDowell's scrupulous analysis they emerge as a storehouse of narrative potential whose performances still have meaning in Kamsá society and culture today. "So Wise Were Our Elders" is a companion volume to McDowell's Sayings of the Ancestors: The Spiritual Life of the Subundoy Indians (1989).

Aging Wisely... Wisdom of Our Elders

Aging Wisely... Wisdom of Our Elders PDF

Author: Irving Silverman

Publisher: Jones & Bartlett Learning

Published: 2017-05-25

Total Pages: 498

ISBN-13: 1284144860

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Aging Wisely... Wisdom of our Elders is a unique resource that reflects the ideas, opinions and experiences of a diverse group of senior citizens. Each story provides a unique perspective on the physical, emotional, and social aspects of growing old from those who have made the journey.

30 Lessons for Living

30 Lessons for Living PDF

Author: Karl Pillemer, Ph.D.

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2012-10-30

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 0452298482

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“Heartfelt and ever-endearing—equal parts information and inspiration. This is a book to keep by your bedside and return to often.”—Amy Dickinson, nationally syndicated advice columnist "Ask Amy" More than one thousand extraordinary Americans share their stories and the wisdom they have gained on living, loving, and finding happiness. After a chance encounter with an extraordinary ninety-year-old woman, renowned gerontologist Karl Pillemer began to wonder what older people know about life that the rest of us don't. His quest led him to interview more than one thousand Americans over the age of sixty-five to seek their counsel on all the big issues- children, marriage, money, career, aging. Their moving stories and uncompromisingly honest answers often surprised him. And he found that he consistently heard advice that pointed to these thirty lessons for living. Here he weaves their personal recollections of difficulties overcome and lives well lived into a timeless book filled with the hard-won advice these older Americans wish someone had given them when they were young. Like This I Believe, StoryCorps's Listening Is an Act of Love, and Tuesdays with Morrie, 30 Lessons for Living is a book to keep and to give. Offering clear advice toward a more fulfilling life, it is as useful as it is inspiring.

Grandmothers Counsel the World

Grandmothers Counsel the World PDF

Author: Carol Schaefer

Publisher: Shambhala Publications

Published: 2006-11-14

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 0834824175

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We are thirteen indigenous grandmothers. . . . We are deeply concerned with the unprecedented destruction of our Mother Earth, the atrocities of war, the global scourge of poverty, the prevailing culture of materialism, the epidemics that threaten the health of the Earth’s peoples, and with the destruction of indigenous ways of life. We, the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, believe that our ancestral ways of prayer, peacemaking, and healing are vitally needed today. . . . We believe that the teachings of our ancestors will light our way through an uncertain future. In some Native American societies, tribal leaders consulted a council of grandmothers before making any major decisions that would affect the whole community. What if we consulted our wise women elders about the problems facing our global community today? This book presents the insights and guidance of thirteen indigenous grandmothers from five continents, many of whom are living legends among their own peoples. The Grandmothers offer wisdom on such timely issues as nurturing our families; cultivating physical and mental health; and confronting violence, war, and poverty. Also included are the reflections of Western women elders, including Alice Walker, Gloria Steinem, Helena Norberg-Hodge, and Carol Moseley Brown.

The Wise Elder

The Wise Elder PDF

Author: Barry Kern Weinhold Ph D

Publisher: Cicrcl Press

Published: 2019-01-15

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 9781882056293

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What is the difference between a wise elder and an old man?" My definition of a wise elder is someone who lives an authentic life, shows up and knows what they want and how to get it. They are wise because they have been able to connect the dots in their lives and learn from all their life experiences. They are self-aware and able to self-correct. They also have spent some quality time considering their mortality.By contrast, an old man is basically just waiting to die. They are not very self-aware and most of what they do is try to stay in their comfort zone. They do not like change or uncertainty. They silently worry about their future and often worry about their children and other loved ones. Henry David Thoreau summed up this group of old men in his famous quote, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation."Currently, we have way too many "old men" and too few wise elders. That is the main purpose why I am writing this book. I want to inspire old men to become wise elders and I want to challenge our society to reach out to our elderly men and do things with them that help them develop their wise elder archetype and cast aside their old man archetype. I also believe that men have to take charge of their lives and create more purposeful activities in their twilight years. They can't just wait for society to change and instead they have to help it change. This book contains the wisdom of 18 contributors from the U. S. and Germany. These men share the wisdom they wish they had gotten when they were young. They also share stories of how they have mentored young men and women and what they, as wise elders, want in their life. This book is alive and full of stories and some humorous anecdotes. There is something for everyone young and old in this book. One of the contributors to the book, Rafa Flores, says this about being a wise elder, "As an elder, advocate, mentor, teacher, example, we as adults with life lessons and wisdom to share, must be proactive. If the mountain won't come to you, YOU must go to the mountain. We as self-aware conscious beings (wise elders), must go to where the kids are. It is only then that they will have access to us, and we to them. This requires awareness of the need and also the effort on our part to make ourselves available. This will truly transform the lives of elders and young people."This book is the 3rd book of a series of four books titled "The Real Men Series." The other two books are "The Male Mother: The Missing Skill Set For Fathers" and "The Servant Leader: What The World Needs Now." The fourth book, tentatively titled, "The Open-Hearted- Lover: Love Is All You Need."Barry K.Weinhold, Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, CO and a licensed psychologist since 1976. He is the author or co-author of 65 books. He also co-directs the Colorado Institute For Conflict Resolution and Creative Leadership in Colorado Springs. He has been involved in the "men's movement" for 40 years and has a private practice specializing in working with men. He knows what men struggle with in their lives and how to help them reach their full potential as an authentic person.He is an avid fly fisherman and a hiker. Barry has been married to Janae. B. Weinhold, Ph.D. since 1984 and they have four children between them and several grandchildren. Together they co-direct the Colorado Professional Development Center in Colorado Springs where they offer trainings to professionals in developmental psychology, especially, Trauma-Informed-Care trainings for professionals.

This Chair Rocks

This Chair Rocks PDF

Author: Ashton Applewhite

Publisher: Celadon Books

Published: 2019-03-05

Total Pages: 302

ISBN-13: 1250311489

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“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 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!

Come of Age

Come of Age PDF

Author: Stephen Jenkinson

Publisher: North Atlantic Books

Published: 2018-07-03

Total Pages: 449

ISBN-13: 1623172098

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In his landmark provocative style, Stephen Jenkinson makes the case that we must birth a new generation of elders, one poised and willing to be true stewards of the planet and its species. Come of Age does not offer tips on how to be a better senior citizen or how to be kinder to our elders. Rather, with lyrical prose and incisive insight, Stephen Jenkinson explores the great paradox of elderhood in North America: how we are awash in the aged and yet somehow lacking in wisdom; how we relegate senior citizens to the corner of the house while simultaneously heralding them as sage elders simply by virtue of their age. Our own unreconciled relationship with what it means to be an elder has yielded a culture nearly bereft of them. Meanwhile, the planet boils, and the younger generation boils with anger over being left an environment and sociopolitical landscape deeply scarred and broken. Taking on the sacred cow of the family, Jenkinson argues that elderhood is a function rather than an identity—it is not a position earned simply by the number of years on the planet or the title “parent” or “grandparent.” As with his seminal book Die Wise, Jenkinson interweaves rich personal stories with iconoclastic observations that will leave readers radically rethinking their concept of what it takes to be an elder and the risks of doing otherwise. Part critique, part call to action, Come of Age is a love song inviting us—imploring us—to elderhood in this time of trouble. That time is now. We’re an hour before dawn, and first light will show the carnage, or the courage, we bequeath to the generations to come.

Wisdom Man

Wisdom Man PDF

Author: Camilla Chance

Publisher: Penguin Group Australia

Published: 2012-08-06

Total Pages: 350

ISBN-13: 1742537022

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Life should be looked upon as a sacred thing, to be handled carefully. If something terrible happens, you stop for a while and have a think, and then you work around the next big problem coming up. Like water around a rock. And you still help people when you can, even your worst enemy. Some lives, like that of Banjo Clarke, are so special they touch countless others without trying. Banjo was born in the early 1920s in the Framlingham Forest near Warrnambool, Victoria, and by the time he passed away he was known and loved by thousands for his wisdom and kindness. He carried a swag during the Great Depression, fought with Jimmy Sharman's famous boxing troupe, built roads for the army in World War II, and had 67 great-grandchildren. Despite the great hardships he faced in his life, Banjo was renowned for espousing love and forgiveness, sustained by his deep connection to his land, his ancient culture and its spiritual beliefs. His conviction that these could prove the saving of the world was his motivation for telling his story.

The Wisdom of the Elders

The Wisdom of the Elders PDF

Author: Robert Fleming

Publisher: One World

Published: 1997-11-25

Total Pages: 369

ISBN-13: 0345409752

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"Know whence you came. If you know whence you came, there is really no limit to where you can go." --James Baldwin In these troubled times, wisdom often seems in short supply. But as this magnificent volume reminds us, African Americans have been blessed with a precious legacy of wisdom, gained through long hard years of struggle by those who have gone before. Wisdom is the most hallowed gift born of experience and endurance. The life-affirming guidance in The Wisdom of the Elders has been gleaned from this bountiful harvest and includes some of the most electrifying and deeply moving writings and speeches ever produced. Here are the unedited works of such luminaries as Sojourner Truth, W. E. B. DuBois, Martin Luther King Jr., Elijah Muhammad, Lorraine Hansberry, Thurgood Marshall, Zora Neale Hurston, Adam Clayton Powell, Mary McLeod Bethune, Marcus Garvey, Barbara Jordan, Paul Robeson, Jean Toomer, and many others. The elders' empowering messages and Robert Fleming's interpretations offer us mother wit, cultural truths, and spiritual sustenance. These words challenge and inspire us to build on the best of our past, to insure our future.

What's Best Next

What's Best Next PDF

Author: Matt Perman

Publisher: Zondervan

Published: 2014-03-04

Total Pages: 375

ISBN-13: 0310494230

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By anchoring your understanding of productivity in God's plan, What's Best Next gives you a practical approach for increasing your effectiveness in everything you do. There are a lot of myths about productivity--what it means to get things done and how to accomplish work that really matters. In our current era of innovation and information overload, it may feel harder than ever to understand the meaning of work or to have a sense of vocation or calling. So how do you get more of the right things done without confusing mere activity for actual productivity? Matt Perman has spent his career helping people learn how to do work in a gospel-centered and effective way. What's Best Next explains his approach to unlocking productivity and fulfillment in work by showing how faith relates to work, even in our everyday grind. What's Best Next is packed with biblical and theological insight and practical counsel that you can put into practice today, such as: How to create a mission statement for your life that's actually practicable. How to delegate to people in a way that really empowers them. How to overcome time killers like procrastination, interruptions, and multitasking by turning them around and making them work for you. How to process workflow efficiently and get your email inbox to zero every day. How to have peace of mind without needing to have everything under control. How generosity is actually the key to unlocking productivity. This expanded edition includes: a new chapter on productivity in a fallen world a new appendix on being more productive with work that requires creative thinking. Productivity isn't just about getting more things done. It's about getting the right things done--the things that count, make a difference, and move the world forward. You can learn how to do work that matters and how to do it well.