Buck Up, Geezer Pals

I've been hearing and reading messages from some downhearted members of our tribe during the past few weeks who have pretty much had it with the world. This is not good. Opinions aside, I worry they are making themselves sad and sometimes sick, by forgetting all that is good.

Buck up? Sure. It's an old English phrase that used to mean that men would put on their best clothing... look their sharpest and act accordingly. It evolved into something that is still used today. Like all great phrases... this one caught on and buck up has a rich history. It can be "Buck up little nipper... or camper or buckaroo or soldier or geezer." Basically it means you have the ability to cheer up, look forward and make things better.

If I know one thing about getting old, it is that we have to stay positive for as many hours each day as we can. This one simple thing helps keep us alive and stay occupied. Most of us are blessed to have a home to live in, a garden or outdoor space to walk in, family members and friends nearby and a safe environment. We have enough resources to have good food, clean water and some left over for little luxuries.

Ah, yes... the luxuries. At your house that might be a new appliance or money toward a vacation. At our house it should be but I've chosen to spend my mad money in the yard this year. The bed of newly-planted dahlias are the light of my life. If you visit here... they will be featured in the yard tour because I want them to be. If this happens, just pretend you're excited. It'll keep the old gal happy.

Last August I ordered eleven dahlia tubers at about the same time I arranged for hip surgery in November. Winter wasn't very good at our house. I wasn't able to drive until spring. On the day I picked them up, I knew those dahlias would change my life and they have. I bucked up... and even surprised myself while planting and nurturing the tubers. The plants give me something to look forward to... not only this year, but in years to come. They make me happy.

I have ideas about how some of us fall into the bad sads and mean greens. This is a condition I suffer from periodically and yes, I had to give it a name. It means I have bouts of depression but the official description seems pretty bland. I'll just say that if you watch too much television news, listen to too much radio news or read too much newspaper news... it could contribute to part of a condition like this. All of us need a break.

This may seem pretty strange coming from a person who spent most of her life working in the newspaper business. The difference is easy for me to justify. I worked in community newspapers. We did not deal with national or international news unless it came to visit our communities in ways which would dramatically affect our readers. It's a fine line and one that every community newspaper deals with every day. Federal loans may be good but Federal interference with local lawmakers and communities may not.

Either way those years helped me learn the things which make our towns thrive. No matter what happened in the places I lived and worked in, no matter what crisis they faced, it was caring for each other and their communities that pulled them out and put them back together.

So, here we are... each of us with our own aged opinions about this world. The one thing we share is the richness left to us by our lives... each year has given us wisdom to share. Whether a year brought you the best or the worst it left behind something you can pass along. If you share with a friend going through a tough time or one of your own family members you will have made the world a better place…that's the hope of Geezer Tribe.

Together we have incredible knowledge and power. Like the stars you see in the sky each night, we're separate but together. I often wonder how many of you know the power you have to make this world a better place.

All you have to do is buck up... just ask my dahlias. :) Have a good week.