This piece is raw, open. and honest. You weave being self-effacing and funny so well. Only with age and time do we have the abilty to reflect on our lives and the chapters we have lived. Using expired Benadryl as the lens is brilliant. As an older woman (70) whose eyes need lenses to read and my skin needs creams with which to rehydrate that slacking collagen, I experienced powerful new energy at 50+. When my kids flew the nest, I had the space for me, my work, more reflection. It is a gift to age gracefully and to nestle into life's priorities with gratitude. Look forward to the years ahead. And have fun in Barcelona and promoting your book!
Loved the article and the intrigue of the passage of time that holding expired benadryl brings. Sooooo appreciate your reflection about our changing bodies through peri-menopause and all the life changes that happen. Massive changes are happening not just in our hormones, bodies but distinctly in our minds.
I recently read that when our bodies go through menopause, all this energy that our bodies, emotions and minds used to tend to, on a monthly basis, for years and years is now...... all of a sudden.....freed up. And there is a re-organization of our energy in this new stage of our lives. I definitely experienced that. With this new freed up emotional and mental space, the person I often found in front of me- was, myself. A familiar stranger whose past two decades of marriage and parenting were a dynamic blur. With settling hormones and acceptance of physical change, there comes an embrace of all those pasts of ourselves that bubble up that need tending to with care and attention. I've come to learn and experience that certain parts of ourselves don't have expiration dates and those are the pasts of ourselves that teach us the most tender lessons about ourselves.
SUPER intriguing title, and way fun wander. Especially since I never heard of "Friendster" and since I just cleaned out our OTC meds the other day and dumped the Benadryl which was only 2 years beyond expiration. But in my powder room, I still have such items as Mentholatum Deep Heat Rub, Absorbine, Jr., Camphorated Oil (precursor to Vick's Vapo-Rub that cost 79 cents marked in wax pencil by my Aunt Gladys who ran Bennett's Variety Store on Chebeague), Sloan's Liniment, Dr. Lyon's Tooth Powder, and Salie's Kank-eze (made in Camden?!!). We should start a chat room for 3am...
Reading and enjoying this the day after a friend sent me a photo of the two of us at a conference in Miami when we were both James Joyce scholars--and it was a blast from my pre-kid, pre-quitting academia past. So I get it with the Benadryl!
Truly love this , betsy
This piece is raw, open. and honest. You weave being self-effacing and funny so well. Only with age and time do we have the abilty to reflect on our lives and the chapters we have lived. Using expired Benadryl as the lens is brilliant. As an older woman (70) whose eyes need lenses to read and my skin needs creams with which to rehydrate that slacking collagen, I experienced powerful new energy at 50+. When my kids flew the nest, I had the space for me, my work, more reflection. It is a gift to age gracefully and to nestle into life's priorities with gratitude. Look forward to the years ahead. And have fun in Barcelona and promoting your book!
Loved the article and the intrigue of the passage of time that holding expired benadryl brings. Sooooo appreciate your reflection about our changing bodies through peri-menopause and all the life changes that happen. Massive changes are happening not just in our hormones, bodies but distinctly in our minds.
I recently read that when our bodies go through menopause, all this energy that our bodies, emotions and minds used to tend to, on a monthly basis, for years and years is now...... all of a sudden.....freed up. And there is a re-organization of our energy in this new stage of our lives. I definitely experienced that. With this new freed up emotional and mental space, the person I often found in front of me- was, myself. A familiar stranger whose past two decades of marriage and parenting were a dynamic blur. With settling hormones and acceptance of physical change, there comes an embrace of all those pasts of ourselves that bubble up that need tending to with care and attention. I've come to learn and experience that certain parts of ourselves don't have expiration dates and those are the pasts of ourselves that teach us the most tender lessons about ourselves.
SUPER intriguing title, and way fun wander. Especially since I never heard of "Friendster" and since I just cleaned out our OTC meds the other day and dumped the Benadryl which was only 2 years beyond expiration. But in my powder room, I still have such items as Mentholatum Deep Heat Rub, Absorbine, Jr., Camphorated Oil (precursor to Vick's Vapo-Rub that cost 79 cents marked in wax pencil by my Aunt Gladys who ran Bennett's Variety Store on Chebeague), Sloan's Liniment, Dr. Lyon's Tooth Powder, and Salie's Kank-eze (made in Camden?!!). We should start a chat room for 3am...
Reading and enjoying this the day after a friend sent me a photo of the two of us at a conference in Miami when we were both James Joyce scholars--and it was a blast from my pre-kid, pre-quitting academia past. So I get it with the Benadryl!
Great piece! GREAT piece!