Our Ask An Angel correspondent is Arlene Petersen, Life Care Navigation Specialist in the area of senior home care.
Q. I am 82. I have lived my life raising my family and helping those around me. I have realized, though, that I still have dreams. Am I being silly or can I really pursue them?
A. You havenāt shared exactly what those dreams are, but Yes! You can definitely pursue your dreams. My friend, who turned 78 this year, wrote and published her first book two years ago. Today, she lives happily in San Antonio and attends a writing class at the local community college and loves every minute of it.
My friendās father started painting when he was 80 and has impressed the local community. He exhibits his work, and some of his pieces have sold for thousands of dollars! Itās never too late to pursue your dreams. Basic goal-setting techniques apply, but let me simplify them for you:
First, write down your dreams. Donāt hold back! Simply write them down. If writing is too difficult, gather a few magazines and tear or cut out pictures that represent your dreams and glue them to paper or a poster board. Whichever method youāve chosen, make sure to keep the ālistā visible in a place that you can see every day.
Next, share your dream with someone. Sharing your dreams can be scary, but it makes them more attainable and keeps them alive in you. Next, break down how you would reach your dreams in baby steps. For example, I had a dream to travel abroad. My dream was in me when I was much younger than I am today. The first baby step I took was to open a savings account at my local bank. I would deposit whatever extra money I had in that account.
It took a long time, but that didnāt matter. I was just pleased that I took the first step, and every time I made a deposit, I was thrilled. After a while, I accumulated enough savings to take that dream trip. I know of active seniors who even get the help of a life coach to help make their dreams come true. If this is something that might work for you, give me a call. I can point you in the right direction. Remember, age is just a number!
ā¢ Have a question for our angel correspondent? You can send our angel an email to apetersen@visitingangels.com or send your question via mail to Ask An Angel, 65 Woodbury St., South Elgin, IL 60177.
