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According to Roger Rosenblatt…

(The blog post below is distilled from Roger Rosenblatt’s April 13 NYTimes article “How to be a Happy 85-Year Old Like Me”). 

  1. Nobody is thinking about you. They are thinking about themselves just like you are.
  2. Make young friends. (This one takes a bit of work, but the payoff is worth it. I’m finally on first name terms with some of the students on my floor.  We bonded over some live baby bunnies in the pre-Easter flower bed outside our building.)
  3. Try to see fewer than five doctors. (This one is tough—but right now, I am at four.)
  4. Get a dog. (This is another tough one.  I love other people’s dogs, but the idea of a winter of walking one…not going to work for me.)
  5. Don’t hear the cheers—or boos. Just do the work.
  6. Everyone’s in pain. Just be kind.
  7. Learn to live with regrets. They’re part of every life.
  8. Start and end each day by listening to Louis Armstrong.

P.S.  Do you have something to add to this list?  Please respond in the comments.

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10 responses to “According to Roger Rosenblatt…”

  1. Jackie Sand Avatar
    Jackie Sand

    Take a walk every day either on a treadmill at a gym or even better, walk outside!

    Reply
  2. Roberta Avatar
    Roberta

    I will add the following:
    Don’t move away from home to retire.

    Reply
  3. Doug Brendel Avatar
    Doug Brendel

    I needed this today! I will keep this on my desktop. Thank you!

    Reply
  4. Jane Avatar
    Jane

    to add: Start moving. Get the lead out. Whichever way works for you—-get a bicycle and hop on, walk, run, walk AND run, join a gym, dont sit in front of the TV all day, etc. As a wise Japanese person answered when asked why most Japanese people are healthy, he said: “Never stop moving.” I think that is great advice.

    Reply
  5. Linlee Avatar
    Linlee

    Keep on learning- about all sorts of things. I recently got into googling about singers and musicians of the Great American Songbook. What a bunch of dysfunctional people most of them were. Ah! So it’s not just us. That lifted some gloom off of me.

    Reply
  6. Judy Avatar
    Judy

    Go for a walk

    Reply
  7. Treesa Avatar
    Treesa

    Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. Theodore Roosevelt

    Reply
  8. Natalie Avatar
    Natalie

    I love your list. One “happy” thing is that I have created special playlists of the music beloved by my dear dead ones. My father’s list gives me peppy Big Band and great Broadway songs; my mother’s list includes a lot of Faure and Debussy. My sister’s list starts with Stravinsky’s “Petrushcka”. My brother’s has Jacquel Brel and Tom Waits. I also enjoy writing loving biographies of these people for my own pleasure and also for those who are related.
    What starts in pain—grief and mourning–become a part of daily life. It’s not morbid to celebrate memories of the past and those who shaped me and my pleasures and preferences.
    And I try to send letters as often as I can to those who are still alive to receive them. I match every screed to a senator with an affectionate note to a real friend or family member.

    Reply
  9. Christine Avatar
    Christine

    If you are unable to take walks or run around or your life is limited by something you can[t control, somehow get someone to help you get outside and to a play ground. Watch the kids playing, hear them squealing and shouting. The younger the better. If a baby or young toddler happens to land near you so you can look into their new eyes, you’ve got a bonus! This is life and possibility they are sharing with you. Smile at it.

    Reply
  10. janet Avatar
    janet

    Give a compliment everyday.

    Reply

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