April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.
William Shakespeare
Is it a normal part of aging to become anxious in situations that never posed a problem before? The answer is yes — and no.
“Anxiety is caused by two main factors; the unknown and the feeling of a lack of control,” explains psychologist Rose-Marie Charest. “As we age, there are more things over which we have less control, such as minor memory lapse and declining strength. We are also more fragile physically, which means that a fall can have more serious consequences than it would have had when we were thirty.”
Worry and fear and anxiety are normal feelings. The concern is letting those tendencies take over your life, so that the “can do” attitude you once possessed at an earlier age almost disappears and is replaced by a defeatist outlook.
I’ve always liked the frog story in Dr. Norman Vincent Peale’s A Guide to Positive Living. It so clearly demonstrates the difference between the optimist and the pessimist. It is the tale of two frogs who fall into a jar of cream. The top of the cream was quite a distance from the opening of the jar. The frogs tried to leap out, but could not make it. They struggled, fretted, did everything possible to get out, all without success.
Finally, one frog assumed a negative attitude. He began to think defeatist thoughts, and the idea of finality started to spread through his mind. He became pessimistic. He said to himself, “I know I can’t get out of this jar of cream, so why should I wear myself out trying? I have to die anyway, so why not get it over; why not die in peace? “ In despair and resignation he sank into the cream and died. His epitaph was “He died of an inferiority complex.”
The other frog was made of sterner stuff. He had a different temperament and background and evidently came from a long line of dauntless frogs. He was a positive thinker. He said to himself “Sure, I may die, but if I don’t I shall go down with every flag flying. I shall fight my way out of this if it is humanly possible” (I suppose that should be “froggily” possible) “but if it is the end and I can’t possibly make it I shall die proudly in the glorious tradition of ancient and honourable frogs.”
He went at it with all his vigour. He swam and he thrashed about. He beat the cream and made a great stir. As a result he began to feel solid matter under him. His legs, whipping like little pistons, got traction and he leapt victoriously from the jar, the contents of which had now turned to solid butter from all the activity.
The Clinton Seniors’ Association acknowledges the tremendous support of the community that led to a successful Daffodil Tea. Thank you! Unfortunately, the fresh cut flowers were unavailable, but the pots were a welcome sign of spring. Grateful thanks also to those who helped in any way, especially the excellent servers from David Stoddart School: Bailey Annett, Ila Coxon, Maddy Miller, and Trinity Parsons. Great job, girls!
The door prizes were won by Blanche Fennell and Helene Cade. Charlotte Edwards won the Cookie Jar Guessing Game. Congratulations to everyone!
Congratulations also to Isabel Haining, longtime member of the Clinton Seniors’ Association, who was selected Citizen of the Year for 2020, to Marian Nelson for 2021, and to Jessica Lawrence for 2022; well-deserved recognition.
Our sincere condolences to Rollie Higginbottom and family on the death of Carol, who was one of our greatest supporters. She helped our organization countless times when we were short-handed. She will be sadly missed in Clinton.
The next regular meeting of the Clinton Seniors’ Association is on April 20 at the Clinton Seniors’ Centre, 217 Smith Avenue, following lunch at noon.
Happy Birthday to Gloria Ferguson (April 17) and Loretta Ferguson (April 20).
Spring passes and one remembers one’s innocence.
Summer passes and one remembers one’s exuberance.
Autumn passes and one remembers one’s reverence.
Winter passes and one remembers one’s perseverance.
Yoko Ono
editorial@accjournal.ca
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