“Letting go of concerns about everything except
what is in front of me and trusting in God’s plan,
I accept each day, each hour, each moment.”
Sister Marguerite Stewart stays spry by exercising a few afternoons each week. When activities are also fun, such as this bean bag toss game, it doesn’t feel much like exercise at all.
Aging With Grace … and God
A TIME OF DISCOVERY
Sister Anece Salay suggests that aging is a thing to be embraced, both as a time of discovery and as a gift from God.
everything changes … even us
With leaves changing all around us, Sister Amata Shina reflects on the new beginnings that come with change
It’s undisputed medical fact that, worldwide pandemic aside, humans are living longer these days. Navigating what spiritual director Patricia Herbst refers to as a “third cycle of life,” is of pressing concern for our country’s ever-aging population. Some journey into maturity with greater ease than others, physical diminishment and spiritual unrest striking no two seniors in exactly the same way.
“Aging carries its many blessings, as well as challenges,” says Sister Marguerite Stewart. “A real challenge for me has been accepting and working with loss of independence.”
Now 90 and beleaguered by balance issues, Sister has stopped driving. She’s learned to lean on others to take her shopping and help her carry things. And she’s learning to accept her own limitations.
“A real balance comes when I can humbly and gratefully accept help but, at the same time, continue to try to do what I can do,” Sister says. “Keeping a joyful and positive attitude in the face of this loss is a growing challenge.”
Such challenges and the strength that spirituality can bring will be the focus of Growing in Wisdom, Age & Grace: A Series for the Seasons of Our Lives, an online program led by Patricia and presented by our St. Francis Center for Renewal.
The subject matter resonates with so many, as witnessed by the response when Patricia led a pair of free-standing programs on the subject earlier in the pandemic. This four-part series permits a deeper dive into the aging process. Participants may attend any or all sessions, and attendance at the earlier programs isn’t necessary to engage in this important conversation.
Sisters Norberta Kralosky, Barbara Ann Webster, Karen Buco and Joyce Burkhart use gumdrops and toothpicks to construct unique creations, an activity that challenged their hands and minds during a summertime gathering.
Regardless of their varied physical limitations, there is a common aging aide to which our Sisters subscribe — their spirituality. Sister Norberta Kralosky finds that having an open, honest conversation with the Lord helps her to maintain inner peace in her 90s.
“As I prepare to sleep at night, I try to think of the day I just finished and talk to the Lord about it,” she says. “I say to God, ‘What did I do for you today?’ Then after some thought, “What did I do to you today?’”
Clearly, canes and hearing aids are far from the only tools available to society’s sagest citizens. As feeding the spirit is just as important as caring for the body, prayer can be an equally important part of the toolkit.
“Prayer eliminates the cloud of not knowing or, better yet, the cloud of thinking that I know it all,” says Sister Barbara Ann Webster, now 86, as she takes a “let go and let live” approach to aging. “Letting go of concerns about everything except what is in front of me and trusting in God’s plan, I accept each day, each hour, each moment.”
Like Sister Marguerite and so many others, Sister Irene Novak has grappled with physical limitations and waning independence this year, her 88th. Prayer, she says, must be tempered with just the right amount of acceptance. “The most challenging part of aging is to accept what is with gratitude, instead of using prayer as a way of asking God to do things differently.”
By sharing their own life experiences, the SFCR series will invite participants to consider the pressing question of “What might God be calling us to in our ever-expanding lives?”
Each day, says Sister Norberta, is another chance to — even now — learn and grow. “I think about the way I responded to the Lord today,” she says. “Perhaps I have done okay or, hopefully, I do better next time. The procedure is very effective. The Lord is very kind and forgiving and wants to help us.”
It’s important to count the blessings of maturity, as well, says Sister Irene. “There is no pressure to accomplish various responsibilities. Spiritually, I have more time to prepare for the afterlife.”
Sister Marguerite concurs. “Growing in age has brought depth to my life,” she says. “My prayer, reflection time and good reading have deepened. My eyes also have opened more to the beauty all around me — in people and creation. These all lead to great gratitude for life and all God's gifts.”
Perhaps the key is in shifting our focus from what we cannot do any longer to what we can do.
“I am capable of a lot of things, but mostly I am capable of making others happy, no matter what my physical or mental ability,” says Sister Barbara Ann. “My advice to my all my fellow travelers in life is go on. Do what you can for the sake of others. Just keep going.”
God is calling us to the challenges before us, and, as the upcoming series will explore, it is up to us as to how we respond.
“I challenge myself each day to truly be alive,” says Sister Marguerite. “To get up each morning, grateful for a new day and choose to live that day, asking God to walk beside me.”
the series
Growing in Wisdom, Age & Grace, presented by our St. Francis Center for Renewal in Bethlehem, Pa., will be conducted entirely online through Zoom. Three sessions remain:
Thursday, January 20, 2022
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, March 10, 2022
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, May 12, 2022
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Participants can attend any or all sessions. The suggested registration offering is $20 per session.
For complete information or to register online through the SFCR website, please click the button below.