My new book Well Seasoned: The Beauty of Age is a tapestry of thought provoking messages regarding Age, Worthiness, Confidence, Friends and Writing. You’ll love reading Anna Marie Peterson’s perspective on life. As an active 102 1/2 year old, she has a few important things to share with us!
Here’s the first page of the introduction to Well Seasoned: The Beauty of Age:
INTRODUCTION
Life is beautiful, and if we are lucky enough to be alive, we owe it to ourselves to celebrate. With each passing decade, we’ve beaten the odds once more. So as a fellow survivor of life, I’d like to invite you to call yourself Well Seasoned instead of “old.â€
Even though it’s very common, the word old is actually the wrong word to describe your age. The dictionary says old means: no longer in use, obsolete, discarded, discredited, and outmoded. While old might describe a car or a washing machine, it’s not the best way to describe a person’s age.
Discussing advanced age is usually not flattering. When I was 35, I competed in Taekwondo tournaments in a division called Senior Women. I remember how insulting that was. In other settings you’ll hear words like mature, senior or geriatric.
When the Persian poet Rumi spoke about different ages, he had three categories: uncooked, cooked and burnt—like a flaming marshmallow blackened to perfection over a campfire. It’s been my experience that the very young (uncooked) have not had enough experiences to be as interesting as they will be when they are cooked by life, and even better, when they’ve lived long enough to transfer wisdom to younger generations (burnt).
Who am I to correct Rumi? Yet, I prefer to use the word Seasoned because it implies a zesty life, sizzling with spice, and filled with the coveted quality of wisdom. Wisdom is like fine wine; it’s an accumulation of processing your experiences over a lifetime… ###
For now, to own a copy of this book (9.95 – no postage!), just email me at [email protected]—and if you want to uplift all your seasoned friends, I’m happy to offer a quantity discount.Â
Enjoy your Seasoned age!