Only 8 days to go until our first ever conference. Lynne Franks is our brilliant key note speaker. Lynne is 78 and still very much in change-the-world-for-women mode! ‘I’m excited to announce that I will be kicking off the Rebel Later Life: The Ideas Party with my new talk - “Who am I going to be when I Grow up?”
An inspiring day for over 50s reminding us that life after 50 isn’t about slowing down but about doing things differently, more boldly and on your own terms.’ Get your ticket while you can - Rebel Later Life: the ideas party is at Cecil Sharp House on Oct 10th during the day.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/.../rebel-later-life-the...
Oh how I wish I were going to see Laurie Anderson in Cardiff on Oct 8th! She was interviewed by The Nerve - "A lot of people, myself included, are so self-critical to the point of absurdity," Laurie Anderson tells The Nerve ahead of her first-ever show in Wales. "Don't do that to yourself. Cut yourself a little more slack." She performs at Wales Millennium Centre - Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru on 8 October.
Photo from the Observer.
The impressive thing is that both his present wife, Isabella and his ex-partner, Tracey and his son, Carlo are carers for Hanif Kureishi. He said about his recent visit to Sicily with them all - and that was no mean feat, they had to hire a hospital bed and hoists etc, well a certain Lady G did - that it was the first time since his son was 2, that he'd been on holiday with both his parents. Which started me thinking about the scope of our panel discussion Re-designing Your Relationship after 50. Oh and there are hideous things about how he was treated at the airport, hauled from wheelchair to narrower wheelchair by untrained hands and one of them even said 'Why is he talking' at one point. And he is incredibly resourced.
Beautiful words from Francis Weller via Silent Verses. Although one of our members has now pointed out that Francis Weller is very much alive. So Silent Verses got this wrong. Also he has recently been exposed for having sex with his students. ‘‘Francis Weller’s words remind us that maturity is not about choosing between sorrow and joy, but learning to make room for both. Grief teaches us to recognize what has been lost, while gratitude helps us remain connected to what is still present and meaningful.
To carry both is to become more open, compassionate, and deeply human. Weller’s work invites us to stop treating grief as something that must simply be overcome and instead understand it as part of our capacity to love, belong, and appreciate life.
As he beautifully writes, “The work of the mature person is to carry grief in one hand and gratitude in the other and to be stretched large by them.” Sometimes it is the tension between these two experiences that expands our understanding of what it means to live fully.’’
5. Brilliant news. Justine Rutherford Gaubert and the Crone Club that she founded in Sheffield - apparently Sheffield is the Crone Capital of the UK - are featured in Top Sante this week. And Justine, of course, is on the Rebel Later Life: the ideas party panel about Ageism and Words where she will be talking about reclaiming words like Crone and Hag. She is also doing a workshop on Stepping Into Cronehood. Oct 10th - Cecil Sharp House, be there or be square! [https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/.../rebel-later-life-the...…
We loved the idea of a Silent Book Club. There is one apparently in Dublin.
‘Just came across a brilliant idea ... Silent Book Clubs.
A lot of book clubs just fizzle out after a while. People might not have time to read all of the book that’s chosen, or may feel shy or uncomfortable if expected to speak about it.
The idea of silent book clubs is that people meet in a cafe or wine bar, and simply read whatever book they like for an hour. At the end, they can choose to stay and socialise, talk about what they’re reading - or not.
The photo below is from Silent Book Club Dublin. It also helps out the local cafe or venue where it takes place. The idea started in San Francisco, and has spread to around 60 countries. I haven’t heard of any silent book clubs in Britain yet - have you?’ Richard Tyrell, author.