The Sage-ing Guild Communicator

    

The Sage-ing Guild Communicator
Changing the paradigm from Aging to Sage-ing®

November 2008

    

2008-4

In This Issue


•A Sage-ing Story
•Ideas
•Workshops
•Of Interest
•Web News
•Sage-ing Guild News
•Membership
•Merchandise
•E-Letters

Coordinating Circle

Carol Bourne, Chair
Michele Baldwin
Gary Carlson
Judy Charlick
Lorri Danzig
Judith Helburn
Trudy Medcalf
Sandy Sabersky
Paul Severance

Contact Us

www.sage-ingguild.org



Sage-ing Guild News


We are pleased to announce that Rick Moody, Director of Academic Affairs for AARP, is our newest Wisdom Circle Member.

Sage-ing Review: The Sage-ing Guild allows anyone to repeat an Intensive for $125.

Hospice Module: Anyone interested in joining a SG committee to develop a Hospice module. Please contact and/or . They are our new SG Education Committee members.

Curriculum Resource Guide, 2d ed.: Currently available to Certified Sage-ing Leaders only. $50. The new CRG is more easily accessed and less redundant. Contact SG Administrative Assistant, . Well worth the price.


Membership


Wisdom Circle: Key figures who have made significant contributions for elders in the world and who share our vision of "changing the paradigm from aging to Sage-ing®."

We are honored to have the following sages in our Wisdom Circle: Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Angeles Arrien, Robert Atchley, Connie Goldman, Richard Leider, Wendy Lustbader, and William Thomas.

Professional members: As of early March, we had about 115 professional members which include both Certified Sage-ing Leaders and Sage-ing Circle Facilitators. Our trained Professional Sage-ing Guild members who by supporting the SG have access to the members-only website and receive discounts for SG events and merchandise among other advantages.

Associate members: As of early August, we have about 60 Associate members. Benefits of Associate membership include:

  • Knowledge that they're supporting the Guild in its work for elders

  • Knowledge that they're supporting the Sage-ing work of Reb Zalman

  • Networking with other members thru listserv

  • Discounts on merchandise

  • Occasional e-newsletter

  • Regional association with other Guild members

  • Discounts on regional, national meetings

    Please see the Sage-ing Guild website for details including membership forms.

    In response to those who find the membership dues too dear, we will honor any Sage-ing Leader who sends what s/he feels is appropriate with membership.


    Merchandise



    The Sage-ing Workbook previously published by SEI has been revived by Bahira Sugarman, Reb Shaya Isenberg and Lynne Iser (which they originally compiled in 1996). It now is in a beautiful new 83-page format for the Sage-ing Guild, with 35 photographs that greatly enhance its appearance and its effectiveness. The Sage-ing content is not changed, just its appearance, which adds a deeper meaning to the words. We now have a variety of Sage-ing materials on the Guild website.

    From Age-ing to Sage-ing is also available from our website, as are audio and video tapes.


    E-Letters


    If you are a member of the Sage-ing Guild, please feel free to contribute to this occasional e-letter. .

    Anyone may subscribe to The Sage-ing Guild Communicator by .



      
    Awakening to Elderhood, we pour the distillates of our lives into other vessels, an act that not only seeds the future but that crowns our lives with worth and nobility.
    —R. Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

    		   


   
Welcome! To the Sage-ing Guild's e-letter. Our vision is To change the paradigm from aging to Sage-ing. You are receiving this because you have expressed interest in Sage-ing or conscious aging. If you do not wish to continue receiving this newsletter, planned for three or four times a year, click to unsubscribe. The Sage-ing Guild Communicator is open to anyone who is interested in conscious aging. One may sign up by sending an email to .

Mission Statement: To change the paradigm of aging by building a community of leaders to transmit the wisdom of Sage-ing.

OUR TEACHERS ARE THE THREADS WHICH WEAVE THE SAGE-ING GUILD TOGETHER!

A Sage-ing Story


A Caregiver's Thoughts While Flying, by Connie Goldman, Wisdom Circle member

Last June, Sunday June 15th to be specific, I expected I'd be at the Sage-ing Guild conference enjoy a fireside chat with all of you who were there. I was delighted to be on the program and looked forward to that evening with great anticipation. Then I was faced with that ever reoccurring truth—life is what happens while you're making other plans. One unexpected phone call and I was on an airplane heading home. "Seems like a heart attack," his agitated son told me. The man I've shared my life with for the past seven years had been taken to the hospital. We caregivers for persons who have chronic health problems never know when such a call might come.

So I sit in seat 14A, hungry, tired, tense and frustrated, unable to give care or comfort to him or myself, wondering if this was the phone call that means a major life change for him and, of course, for me. I guess when the person who has just been rushed to the hospital in an ambulance is 80 years old, the immediate thought is not only of the possibility of death but of what recovery might involve both for patient and caregiver. Yet, as I sit in limbo, there is no way to plan, no way know what factors need priority consideration, no way to do anything. It took me over half the flight to just be there, breathe, quietly close my eyes, let go, because that was all I could do at that moment.

The end of this particular incident has a hopeful outcome. Six days in the hospital and some days of home care and, now, we're both in pretty good shape, mentally and physically. He is a bit more frail than before the incident, shorter on available energy and happy to take a daily nap. I'm able to handle the few extra chores, and a couple of extra caregiver responsibilities. These are small changes in our life. There are big changes too, at least for this caregiver. I have a deeper thankfulness and appreciation for the depth and richness of our time together. Each day I'm aware that being in the moment is the real gift of living.

Do you have a Sage-ing Story? A Sage-ing question? Send it to .

Ideas


Rosalie Muschal-Reinhardt's Essence of Sage-ing in 5 Minutes or Less

Many years ago I heard an Education Professor say that "educators give tools." She made her point by wearing a carpenter's tool belt. Oh, how I agree. Here is how I give tools in a 5-minute Invitation to the Introduction at faith communities.

The purpose of the Sage-ing Program is to have people "harvest their wisdom from long-life experiences." I will share some of my experiences and ask you to think of your own experiences.

I have 75 years and 4 months of life experiences. Isn't that a nicer way than saying, "I am 75 years oooollllddd!" And what about being 75. The wisdom I share is that "Aging is a privilege that does come to everyone." Ask my friend who had cancer had age 49, fourth-stage cancer at 55. She is delighted to have 73 years of life experiences today. What is your wisdom about your life experiences?

I have been married to Al for 53 years and 3 months. Everyone does not get married. However, everyone has many kinds of relationships.
Wisdom: Relationships are about listening to another person's perceptions, which may be different from yours without changing one's perception—or trying to change theirs. What is your experience about relationships?

I have been a mother for 184 years—count the ages of your children.
Wisdom: A task for older persons is to treat our adult children as "adults, first" and children second. What is your wisdom about your children or the children in your family?

I have been an educator for over 54 years. I love my work because it satisfies my insatiable desire to learn.
Wisdom: When our work celebrates our talents, it doesn't feel like "work" even when we "work" very hard. What is your wisdom from your experiences of your work?

And so I am here to invite you a one-hour presentation that will be an Introduction for the Sage-ing Program "Aging as a Spiritual Adventure" that will be held...

Workshops


Training:


Third Annual Florida Sage-ing Intensive: January 17-18, 2009. Parrish, FL. Facilitators: Julia & James Riley. Cost: $250. For more information, see the brochure, , or call 941-776-8024.

"Becoming a Sage": February 28-March 1, 2009. Mary & Joseph Retreat Center, Rancho Palos Verdes [near LA] CA. Facilitators: Maureen Dobson and Judith Helburn. Cost: $250. For more information, or call her at 512-454-7229, or or call her at 303-819-2588.

"Becoming a Sage": April 3-5, 2009. Longmont Senior Center, Longmont CO. Facilitators: Maureen Dobson and Judith Helburn. Cost: $250. For more information, or call her at 512-454-7229, or or call her at 303-819-2588.

Classes, Workshops, Conferences and Retreats presented by our members:


Choosing Conscious Elderhood: May 8-14, 2009. Choosing Conscious Elderhood will be held at a retreat center in a juniper forest high on a mesa in Western Colorado. It is offered by long-time vision quest guides Ron Pevny (who presented the workshop "Into the Wild" at the Sage-ing Guild Conference) and Nancy Jane. For details, , call him at 970-247-7943, or visit the Lost Borders website.

Of Interest


Death as Homecoming: Life is the Answer: December 7-12. Franciscan Center, Tampa FL. Facilitators: Rabbis Nadya & Victor Gross. Cost:$900, includes food & lodging. For more information, .

Aging in America: NCOA/ASA annual conference. March 15-19. Las Vegas NV. For more information, see the conference website.

From Judy Steiert, conference presenter of the outstanding Movie session. Copies of the book Autumn Wisdom are available from the Willowgreen website. Discount prices for bulk orders are available if you order by phone: 260-490-2222.

Planning on giving a workshop? Do you know that the Adult Spiritual Renewal & Empowerment website lists retreat centers around the country?

The October of our lives: "Forest-dwelling is not necessarily retirement; it is more a state of mind than a plan of action," says Wendy Doniger, a professor religion who has studied comparative mythology and the life-course. For an account of how she now practices what she's preached, see this article on the AARP website.

Does Wisdom Increase with Age? For one answer, consider the thoughts of George Vaillant, MD, Harvard director of the study of lives, who has been studying the subject for years. See this article in the Harvard University Gazette. Most likely, this is from Vaillant's 2008 book Spiritual Evolution.

Write Your Self Well: Journal Your Self to Health by Ina Albert (CSL) and Zoe Keithley. $14.95.

Volunteer Drivers Get Mileage Rate Boost: Congress' financial bailout package includes a provision to increase through 2009 the volunteer mileage rate to 41 cents per mile. Under current law, volunteer drivers are allowed to deduct from their taxes 14 cents per mile when using personal vehicles for volunteer service. They may count only a portion of any mileage reimbursement as nontaxable income, also at 14 cents per mile.

Web News


"Elderwoman Space is a special meeting place for women in—or entering—the 'crone' phase of their lives." It is a network for "third age" women and is by invitation only. Forums, blogs, book news, and sharing with women worldwide are all a part of this wonderful network. I have found it to be quite interesting and a strong community of very creative women. I have been doing a blog on Elderwomanspace called Sage-ing® into Creative Aging which has been well received. Interested? .

Watch the Wisdom Book movie

Aging Deliberately is a new newsletter edited by Liz Taylor, a Seattle journalist. Interesting articles. $12/year

Sage Encounters is Davida Gendel's [Certified Sage-ing Leader] California website.

Generations United incorporated in 1997 as an independent entity and continues today as the country's only membership organization promoting intergenerational public policies, programs, and strategies whose membership represents over 70 million Americans.

Elder Circles: New ideas and resources for forming an Elder Circle. An Elder Circle can be a great way to forward our conscious eldering journey. All it takes is a handful of people who agree to meet on a regular schedule.

The Eden Alternative is a small not-for-profit organization making a big difference in the world. Based on the core belief that aging should be a continued stage of development and growth, rather than a period of decline. The Eden Alterative was founded by Wisdom Circle member, Bill Thomas.

Have questions about the website? Need help finding something? Contact the .