A Wise Woman I Met

Author: Catherine Pulsifer

I have had the privilege of meeting some very interesting people over the years some of which were through my former employment, and a lot more after I left the corporate world. Some of these people made a great impact on my life, my views and personal philosophy. Others I met had the opposite affect because they represented attitudes, behaviors and beliefs that were directly opposed to my own experiences, my views on life, and my hard held feelings about the value of all people.

One Amazing Woman
One such person I met after I left my former position was a woman in her late seventies. She had been an active woman, raised a family and had engaged in helping others, and developed her own crafts to sell at selected craft shows throughout the year.

When I met her for the first time, I couldn’t believe that she was in her late seventies – I would have placed her age more in her early sixties. After speaking with her for a short period, it was only then that the conversation seemed to turn to age. And, it wasn’t a conversation about age that zoned in on the frailty of age, or the aches and pains, or about pleasures lost, or about making sure her will was in order before she died.

A Zest For Life
The conversation, instead, focused on her zest for life and all the things that she was in the planning stages of doing. And, what she was planning to do wasn’t about adding to her flowerbed (although it was huge as it was); it wasn’t about going to a seniors group so she and her husband could go on an escorted bus tour. What she was planning was an excursion to Europe, unaccompanied by any tour operator or taken around the usual sights by a local guide. It was a trip where she and her husband could go off on their own and explore, to see what they wanted, to go where they wanted to, and when they wanted to.

She really impressed me a lot because of her zest for life; for an uncompromising view of the future not in the least affected by her age; for the undying faith in knowing that there was a great deal of life yet to be discovered and experienced and yearning for each new image, discussion, smell, cultural uniqueness or experience.

Positive Attitude
We all meet new people constantly, and some we feel close and comfortable with not even knowing why. But, let me try and explain why I felt so drawn to her. I was drawn to this exhilarating woman for her positive outlook, and because she was genuine.

To me, genuine means that there is no pretence, no phoniness, no behavior observed in being among other people that you would not see within the confines of her house if you happened to be a fly on the wall. Her positive attitude was infectious just like a situation you may encounter where two people are laughing uncontrollably and you start to laugh along with them without knowing why.

I met a wise woman – a woman who encourages and radiates vitality, being positive, and living life to the fullest. I look forward to looking in the mirror, some day in the future, and see her reflection.

Inspirational Quotes To Consider
“I know old men at forty and young men at seventy-three.” Edgar A. Guest

“Many seniors have accomplishments, beyond your wildest imaginations. You have to treat them as the individuals they are. Age is truly a state of mind.” Andie Silverstein and Marlee T. Ruth

“He who is of a calm and happy nature will hardly feel the pressure of age, but to him who is of an opposite disposition, youth and age are equally a burden.” Plato

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