Episode 266: A Young Mind

During the month of May, many states host an annual event on the governor's conference on "Aging." At these conferences, older Americans may learn new ways for healthy living and lifelong learning. Some time ago, my friend Mary shared an article entitled, "Nostalgia," which I feel may be interesting to our readers as they review the changes of the century.

"Over the last 50 to 60 years, we have been witnesses to many changes in our lives...Here are just a few of them: We were born before cordless phones, fax machines and ice makers. Who ever heard of organ transplants or root canals? Horsepower was something to do with a horse. Callers rang the doorbell instead of blowing their horn. The fallout problem was something kept under your hat, and when folks sat down to dinner, they counted their blessings instead of calories. Guided missiles were rolling pins and frying pans. A babysitter was called a mother. A child had more brothers and sisters than fathers, and a car didn't wear out before it was paid for. A housewife canned food instead of taking it out of cans. Being a parent required more patience than money. Baths were taken once a week, and religion every day, and the only red menace was long winter underwear. $5 worth of groceries filled two bags, and when we were in school, the hard stuff meant algebra. We did without disposable diapers, velcro and scotch tape. Instead of the internet and the information superhighway, we had the party line. In our day, television was truly a luxury, and a black and white luxury at that. Tape meant to reel to reel, not cassettes or videos... and CDs were certificates of deposits, not compact discs, and owning a "hi-fi" was all the rage, and who could forget driving a Packard or a Nash? The only millionaires in baseball were the owners. Bunnies were small rabbits and rabbits were not Volkswagens. Cars in our time met running boards, cranks, Model A Roadsters and rumble seats. A mouse was a furry little creature, not part of a computer, and the only babes politicians kissed were those in their mother's arms. We were before Hawaii and Alaska became states, Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer, Snoopy, DDT, interstate highways, Holiday Inns, air conditioned cars and decaffeinated anything. We came from a time when we left our front door open. College kids swallowed goldfish, not alcohol, and in our day, songs had a tune and the words made sense. "Hippie" meant big in the hips. A trip meant travel. Bread came from bakeries, not the min. We were before microwave popcorn, child proof medicine bottles, and cars with cruise control. Streaking was what happened when you washed windows. Holidays were for getting together, not for getting away. And remember when a chick was a chicken, not the girl down the street? Tennis shoes were only worn in PE class. Bathing suits would cover your knees. And when you said, "I don't have anything to do," your parents said, "Find something to do!" In our day, we would swing and sway with Sammy K, waltz with Wayne King, dance to Guy Lombardo, and polka with Leo Greco. We have survived all of these changes and many more. What an exciting time to have lived."

Warm Thought: Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80, anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young. Henry Ford. May you have many warm thoughts!

Warm Thoughts from the Little Home on the Prairie Over a Cup of Tea, written by Dr. Luetta G. Werner.

Published in the Marion Record May 21st, 1998.

Download the Found Photo Freebie and cherish your memories of the past.

Enjoy flipping through the Vintage Photo Book on your coffee table.

I hope you enjoyed this podcast episode! Please follow along on this journey by going to visualbenedictions.com or following me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. You can listen to the podcast on Apple Podcast,.css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}