Monday, November 25, 2024

Geezer and His Dog

 In anticipation of the new ski season I continue with my morning workout on my recumbent bike.  Geezers like me need to keep moving to maintain our ability to hit the slopes.  I continue to be optimistic for the coming year, but who knows.   

My workout gives me a view of the street out our sunroom window, so I regularly see neighbors out for their walks and constitutionals.  This morning I was struck by the pace of a gentleman walking his dog.  Both were obviously in their senior years.   The pace was quite slow and halting and was a reminder to me that regardless of our discipline in working out, there are limitations to our success.  So be it!  However, we should continue to count our blessings and be thankful for each day and find joy where we can.

Speaking of joy, I found some today as I was reading the Writer's Almanac by Garrison Keilor.  There was a wonderful poem by Joyce Sutphen on the vagaries of our encounter with our environment.  A poignant piece underlining the impact of our surroundings in our lives as ephemeral events.  I am her admirer since she often writes about rural life scenes.  In addition, I was uplifted learning that today is the birthday of Andrew Carnegie. Delighted to be reminded that Carnegie was one who amassed a huge fortune in the steel industry and proceeded to retire early and distribute his wealth to building libraries, promoting peace and supporting many philanthropic efforts.   Unfortunately, I was dampened in my delight by the observation of the unfeeling behavior of many of our billionaires of our day.  They seem to desire only accumulation of vast wealth without appreciating that they could be great doers of good in society for the less fortunate.

In closing, I recognize I have strayed from major emphasis on geezer skiing issues.  That seems inevitable in the non-skiing season.  However, there are other dimensions to life that sometimes need to be aired.

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