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AHN NEWS: November 2003
This month's news is dedicated to CREATIVE AGING. We interview Renya Larson from the National Center for Creative Aging, review Crones Don't Whine and The Second Half of Life, and feature a link to the Raging Grannies of Seattle. We also include two new features, Readers Respond and the AHN E-Mailing List, both designed to enhance community through communication.
AHN INTERVIEW: Renya Larson, Associate Director, National Center for Creative Aging
"Art knows no age. The body may change but the imagination still burns bright."
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- Jane Alexander quoted on the NCCA home page
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Based in Brooklyn, New York, the National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA) was founded in 2001 to promote networking, training and advocacy for creative aging. Their publications include Legacy Works: Transforming Memory into Visual Art and The Arts and Dementia Care: A Resource Guide - both available through the NCCA at www.creativeaging.org. The Arts and Healing Network interviewed their Associate Director, Renya Larson, this Fall.
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Elder shows off the memory
box she made with her home health aide in a program at
the Penn South House in Manhattan.
Photo: Justine Stehle
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AHN: What inspired the founding of the National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA)?
Larson: The demand for training in arts and aging programs has increased exponentially over the past ten years among professionals in social work, health care and the arts. The National Center for Creative Aging emerged in order to provide training and networking opportunities in this emerging field.
AHN: What is the NCCA's focus right now?
Larson: The NCCA supports the formation of arts and aging organizations that serve as networking hubs for their region. All together, these organizations are called "The NCCA Network." The NCCA Network is already active in every region of the country, greatly expanding the creative outlets available to older people.
AHN: How did you personally become involved in NCCA and working with the elderly?
I was introduced to the NCCA by Dr. Anne Basting, the founder of TimeSlips, a storytelling project for people with dementia. I had been certified as a TimeSlips trainer by Dr. Basting, and was very moved by the impact of the project on people with Alzheimer's. The National Center for Creative Aging coordinates trainings for dementia care staff in TimeSlips in the New York region.
AHN: What does it mean to age creatively?
Larson: To age "creatively" means to adapt to the challenges of aging in ways that allow for continued growth. In our society, older people face so many challenges: physical, medical, economic, social, etc. To age "creatively" means to continue to strive to make one's life meaningful and enjoyable at ANY age.
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An elder at the Penn South Program concentrates as she layers buttons, fabric, tissue paper and yarn onto her collage.
Photo by Justine Stehle.
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AHN: Can you explain how the arts have a healing impact on elders?
Larson: I think the arts can be healing in many ways. First, many older people have few outlets for genuine engagement. The arts can be a powerful way to engage deeply with the world through sensory sensations, ideas and themes. Second, the arts often provide older people with a much-needed outlet for building meaningful connections to others. Third, the arts can provide older people with a tangible way to leave a legacy, thus reducing the fear and sadness that many people experience toward the end of life. Finally, the arts can provide a rich opportunity for what Erik Erickson called "integration," a process by which older people reflect on their life experiences in order to "...provide a meaningful interplay between beginning and ending as well as some finite sense of summary and, possibly, a more active anticipation of dying."
AHN: What advice do you have for others wishing to learn more about engaging elders in the creative process?
Larson: Please visit our on-line resource at www.creativeaging.org which includes the Arts & Aging Directory, a national listing of programs in this field. You could also subscribe to our free e-newsletter, "Creative Aging" by sending a blank email with "subscribe" as the subject to ncca@creativeaging.org.
AHN: How does NCCA sustain its good work - creatively and financially?
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Home health aide works with a frail homebound elder at the Penn South Program for Seniors. Photo by Justine Stehle.
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Larson:
The NCCA sustains its work through foundation support, through membership dues, and through income generated from publications and training. Creatively, we are blessed with a staff deeply committed to our mission, and we are deeply nourished with the creative endeavors of others in the field.
AHN:
What excites you most about the NCCA at this time?
Larson:
I believe that the quality and quantity of creative outlets for older people is rapidly expanding. It is very exciting to be a part of an organization that has taken a leadership role in this emerging field.
To learn more about the National Center for Creative Aging, visit www.creativeaging.org
Featured Book
Crones Don't Whine: Concentrated Wisdom for Juicy Women
By Jean Shinoda Bolen
"A wise and honest book. Profoundly important to the sustainability of our species and the world." - Alice Walker
Jean Shinoda Bolen, author of Goddesses in Everywoman, has packed much wisdom into this slim, but rich, hardback. Each of the 13 chapters is dedicated to a specific quality of crones such as "Crones Are Fierce about What Matters to Them" and "Crones Speak the Truth with Compassion." As the author explains, "A crone is a woman who has wisdom, compassion, humor, courage, and vitality. She has a sense of truly being herself, can express what she knows and feels, and take actions when need be. She does not avert her eyes or numb her mind from reality. She can see the flaws and imperfections in herself and others, but the light in which she sees is not harsh and judgmental. She has learned to trust herself to know what she knows." Woven throughout the book are the healing arts of storytelling, dancing, singing, humor and gardening. Overall, Crones Don't Whine shapeshifts the elder years into a rich and fertile time for savoring life and being a catalyst for positive change. Although written for crones, the wisdom here is timeless, offering insights to young and old alike. To learn more about the author, visit www.jeanshinodabolen.com.Published by Conari Press in 2003. Hardcover. 116 pages. $14.95. Click here to order through Amazon.com
Selected excerpts from the 13 Chapters in Crones Don't Whine
#1 Crones Don't Whine
ÖMy friend Jananne, who heard me say that "chrones don't whine," laughingly told me how she resisted the temptation to call me up and whine when confronted with the daunting task of unpacking and beginning a new life. Instead, she play-acted an exaggerated version of her whiner, with just herself as audience, and then kept on with what had to be doneÖ
#3 Crones Have Green Thumbs
ÖGardening requires vigilance. There are small pests and large destructive ones that need to be fenced out. I live where families of deer view gardens as restaurants, for example. For metaphoric gardens, the threat is usually the two-legged variety. As women who work at home have long realized unless you build strong boundaries around your own time, other people assume they can intrude with their needs. Once you retire, boundary-keeping skills are absolutely necessary. The garden that is YOU is the one that most needs a green thumb and strong fencesÖ
#9 Crones Listen to Their Bodies
ÖA crone learns that fulfilling what both body and psyche desire brings about a sense of well-being; for example, when women who want to dance make time for it. If dancing is a joy, then endorphins are released, enhancing pleasure and diminishing aches and painsÖ
#12 Crones Laugh Together
ÖWhen I have explained women's healing laughter to mixed audiences, I have commented that chrones will report afterward, "I laughed so much, I could have wet my pants," and then I pause and say, "and being postmenopausalÖ" which is invariably followed by a wave of laughter from the women in the audience, those who know very well that this actually happens. This is a glimpse of healing humor, which acknowledges and makes light of difficulties that unite rather than divide us. It's a slice of shared life...
#13 Crones Savor the Good in Their Lives
ÖSavoring is about giving an experience your full attention and truly taking it in. Savoring is about gratitude for this moment. If you are a crone with an eye for nature's beauty, you may see a gorgeous sunrise or geese flying overhead in formation against a blue sky, or pick up a perfectly formed seashell on the beach, and in the "ahhh" of visual appreciation, there's a 'thank you'Ö
Audio Resource
The Second Half of Life:
The Blossoming of Your Creative Self
By Angeles Arrien
"This lovely and complex program is about opening to the deeper mysteries of who we are at midlife and recovering the great dream we have for our lives. Angeles Arrien, author, cultural anthropologist, and eloquent storyteller, describes the three principles that should inform the second half of life: generativity, intimacy and creativity. One way to follow these principles is to perform daily the three cross-cultural tasks referred to by Arrien as "the Blessing Way"--say a prayer or set a sacred intention, express gratitude and perform at least one life-affirming action. Many stories are interwoven throughout the program: Solomon's Wisdom, Pandora's Box, The 12 Labors of Hercules, and The Nine Muses. Eloquent and provocative, Arrien provides not only stories and myths, but also many practical instructions to encourage us to change at mid-life. To paraphrase the poet Rumi, Arrien inspires her listeners to drop "the shrouds of insufficiency" and to return to our souls' highest nature. A well-crafted, superbly recorded, and rewarding audio work." (C.S. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine)
To learn more about the author, visit www.angelesarrien.com.The Second Half of Life was produced by Sounds True in 1998. Six cassettes. Total running time is 9 hours. $60. Click here to order through Amazon.com.
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Featured Link
Raging Grannies of Seattle
www.raginggrannies.com
Raging Grannies singing to save the emergency
shelter for homeless in King County
In the tradition of wise women elders, the mission of the Seattle Raging Grannies is to promote global peace, justice, and social and economic equality by raising public awareness through the medium of song and humor. Learn more about them and how to start a Raging Grannies Group in your local area at their web site at www.raginggrannies.com.
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NEW! READERS RESPOND
Have a story about creative aging? Share your thoughts and feedback by emailing ahn@artheals.org. We will publish responses in next month's news page.
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