Dr. Bill Thomas
Aging expert Dr. Bill Thomas and musical guest Nate Silas Richardson offer a exploration of aging at the Barking Legs Theater on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 7-8:30 p.m. as part of his national Age of Disruption Tour.
Suggested $25 donation for the event may be made at http://drbillthomas.com/age-of-disruption-tour.
“Everything we think we know about getting older is wrong,” says Dr. Thomas, a Harvard educated physician and author of the book Second Wind: Navigating the Passage to a Slower, Deeper, and More Connected Life. “We are being manipulated and misled by a cult-like devotion to youth and speed. It’s time we shake ourselves out of the misery of aging and repurpose and restore the wonders and integrity of the second half of life.”
Review for Age of Disruption Tour:
Dr. Thomas’ message is invigoratingly simple – the transition into our elder years should not be spent in frenzied disharmony. In order to play “life’s most dangerous game” successfully we need to reimagine and create clear and satisfying purpose to how we spend the rest of our lives.
In a 90-minute “non-fiction theater” performance, Dr. Thomas argues that society has twisted things around and created a diminished and demeaning picture of age and aging.
“It’s crazy,” he says. “We impose the stress-filled demands and rigors of adulthood on children and at the same time we impose ludicrous and unhealthy expectations of youth and beauty on older adults. It results in lives that are disconnected and out-of-balance – unprepared to deal with the realities of aging.”
The performance teaches a better way and explains how people can reframe their attitudes so they can experience a heightened sense of meaning and connection with age.
“Aging is better now than it has ever been in history," said Dr. Thomas. "The problem is that our society has a deeply flawed idealization with youth, and we’ve forgotten how to age with grace, style, and purpose.
“There are things you can do that help you gain a deeper appreciation of the world and a new way to enjoy the freedom, meaning, and excitement that can be derived from playing ‘life’s most dangerous game’ with the enthusiasm it deserves.”
Here’s a sample of some of the ideas and actions he recommends:
1. Protect your kids and elders from the cult-like addiction and devotion to youth. Push back against the encroachment of inverted values on kids’ and elders’ turf. Let the kids be kids and let the elders grow old gracefully. Say no to standardized tests in kindergarten. Don’t worship youth as perfection.
2. Ignore the Anti-Aging Gurus and Quackery. Toss the creams, supplements, and elixirs. Say no to botox, human growth hormones and other expensive and even dangerous snake oils that give you nothing but false hope. Resist the pressure and don’t succumb to the idea that the only good older person is one who looks and acts like a younger person.
3. Look in the Mirror and Embrace Yourself. Love yourself the way you are. Don’t accept the idea that aging is defined solely as a matter of decline. Rejoice in the fact that lots of things get better and improve with age. Enjoy the fact that there is more happiness and less stress, anger, and strife.
4. Slow down and focus on quality time. Stop letting your time-saving gadgets, apps, and technology take over the natural rhythms in your life. Turn them off. Turn the volume down. Get away from them. Go outside. Take a walk every day. Meditate. Have a conversation with a loved one. Break the pandemic hurry sickness.
5. Choose how you spend your time. Think about how you spend each day. Choose to do less things you don’t like or enjoy. Choose to do more things that you like to do. Don’t say yes, when you want to say no. Say no and do what you want to do instead. Spend more time with the people you enjoy and less time with the people you don’t.
6. Volunteer Your Time to Help Others. Get involved somewhere – anywhere you can spend time helping others. Enjoy the fact you have abundant time to devote to others. Give yourself to help others and you will strengthen the bonds between you and other people in your community.
7. Take up a new hobby or an old one you abandoned. Spend more time doing something you really love and are fascinated with. Experience the wonder and joy of trying new things and developing skill and even expertise you never imagined was possible. Don’t be afraid to be a beginner. Share your creations with others frequently so that you look forward to more unique and special opportunity to connect and engage.
8. Call your elders more frequently. If you don’t have one, get a surrogate, no matter your age. Reach out, communicate and engage with more elders more frequently. Realize that the time you spend with them is a gift beyond measure. Seek out and learn more ways to make their time interesting and enjoyable. Learn to appreciate and benefit from the time you have to talk to them, guide them and exchange much needed wisdom.
9. Protect Your Play Time. Don’t let the cult of adulthood wreak havoc on your play time. Liberate yourself and experience the joy and energy that results from spontaneous, unstructured play. If you need help figuring this one out, find a child to guide you. If you are with your elders, break out a game of cards, checkers, or Monopoly. Everyone lives better when they have enough unstructured playtime.
10. Create and organize rituals to honor aging. Get together with other men and women and spend time showcasing the things you appreciate, sharing your knowledge, crafts, creations and stories, bestowing respect, honor and dignity on each other. Instead of allowing society to marginalize you and others because of your age, come together and celebrate your coming of age. Champion one and all to become a “crone” or “sage” as an act of empowerment.
More information is available at http://www.drbillthomas.com