In an excerpt from her essay collection, "The Kitchen is Closed: And Other Benefits of Being Old," Sandra Butler assesses her 83-year-old body from head to toe.
Oh, Sandy, what a wonderful piece to come across! The bra story is one that made me laugh! As soon as I got in the car after work, the first thing I did was unhook it! And still some days after all the running around, it’s such a joy to feel that release. Love you! Paula Shara Freedman
You're beautiful, truly .. I mean, look at that smile!!! Blessings at 83 and onward ... From a curly headed (less maybe 2/3rds of what once was) 77 year old 😊👵
If it makes anyone who wore pointy-toe heels and has bunions now, my podiatrists have all assured me it’s hereditary and impossible to avoid even with lifelong wearing of Birkenstocks. My brother has bunions, too, and never wore pointy heels, just dude shoes.
The comfort we sacrificed to wear the pointy toe shoes, however, is another story! :)
I think both your piece and you are lovely but then I do also have a front tooth that seems to need to be corralled and cataract surgery is long overdue. Be well.
Thank you, Sandra! You hit the nail on the head. Soon to be 65, I'm right behind you and watching what gravity and oxygen do to my body every day. My Birthday wish is to learn to see the beauty in every wrinkle, chubby ankle, bruise, hair loss and all the rest! I recently went to a talk by Tracey Gendron, author of Ageism Unmasked: Exploring Age Bias and How to End it. Excellent, by the way...
Fantastic read. Funny, poignant, and oh so true. The body thing, the wrapping of our vessel, our vessel that was only half educated...
of course to attract a mate in oder to preserve the species, looking our best is naturally a good thing, but what of the inner vessel? do we not care for the car's engine as well as its shiny exterior?
Is this crazy human experience meant to play out this way? Well, I'm a mere 73, and finally feeling great about myself. My insides hold the wealth of my experiences, while the outside keeps them guessing
I love these kinds of life-giving posts. At 47, I am having to learn to love this body as it is. I can handle the wrinkles on my face and the sagging kangaroo pooch, but I pray with everything in my being that I do not get crepe paper neck. You must certainly have a very fine neck, which gives me hope. Anyway--you are beautiful and witty. I’m reading this having just got home, removed the bra (can never find one even remotely comfortable), put on my favorite pair of jeans and tee, and gone outside to enjoy the trees shedding their leaves. Seasons. All are beautiful, and you have reminded me of that.
This is lovely, touching, and funny. I turned 60 this year, also a landmark. If only we could have deeply loved and appreciated our female bodies when we were younger and truly youthful/beautiful (as we all were). I often think of all the dislike and hate in my teens, 20s, and 30s aimed at my too-big stomach, too-muscular legs, broad shoulders, whatever....and wonder what I could have fueled had that directed energy been positive instead of negative. I'm determined to change that in this decade.
Thank you! And yes our hair thins. Our bones thin. Everything thins, except perhaps our stomachs and hips which tend to go in another direction.
Oh, Sandy, what a wonderful piece to come across! The bra story is one that made me laugh! As soon as I got in the car after work, the first thing I did was unhook it! And still some days after all the running around, it’s such a joy to feel that release. Love you! Paula Shara Freedman
Love this and thank you!!
You're beautiful, truly .. I mean, look at that smile!!! Blessings at 83 and onward ... From a curly headed (less maybe 2/3rds of what once was) 77 year old 😊👵
If it makes anyone who wore pointy-toe heels and has bunions now, my podiatrists have all assured me it’s hereditary and impossible to avoid even with lifelong wearing of Birkenstocks. My brother has bunions, too, and never wore pointy heels, just dude shoes.
The comfort we sacrificed to wear the pointy toe shoes, however, is another story! :)
Humor! Thankfully. I know all about taking the bra off at day's end. And the search for support and comfort. Otherwise, you're radiant.
The bras! They are an archive, that drawer of bras. (My drawer of bras is an archive, certainly.) Loved this.
I think both your piece and you are lovely but then I do also have a front tooth that seems to need to be corralled and cataract surgery is long overdue. Be well.
Thank you, Sandra! You hit the nail on the head. Soon to be 65, I'm right behind you and watching what gravity and oxygen do to my body every day. My Birthday wish is to learn to see the beauty in every wrinkle, chubby ankle, bruise, hair loss and all the rest! I recently went to a talk by Tracey Gendron, author of Ageism Unmasked: Exploring Age Bias and How to End it. Excellent, by the way...
Fantastic read. Funny, poignant, and oh so true. The body thing, the wrapping of our vessel, our vessel that was only half educated...
of course to attract a mate in oder to preserve the species, looking our best is naturally a good thing, but what of the inner vessel? do we not care for the car's engine as well as its shiny exterior?
Is this crazy human experience meant to play out this way? Well, I'm a mere 73, and finally feeling great about myself. My insides hold the wealth of my experiences, while the outside keeps them guessing
I love these kinds of life-giving posts. At 47, I am having to learn to love this body as it is. I can handle the wrinkles on my face and the sagging kangaroo pooch, but I pray with everything in my being that I do not get crepe paper neck. You must certainly have a very fine neck, which gives me hope. Anyway--you are beautiful and witty. I’m reading this having just got home, removed the bra (can never find one even remotely comfortable), put on my favorite pair of jeans and tee, and gone outside to enjoy the trees shedding their leaves. Seasons. All are beautiful, and you have reminded me of that.
There's beauty in aging. It may take a sense of humor to find it, and you certainly did.
beautiful. all of this.
This is lovely, touching, and funny. I turned 60 this year, also a landmark. If only we could have deeply loved and appreciated our female bodies when we were younger and truly youthful/beautiful (as we all were). I often think of all the dislike and hate in my teens, 20s, and 30s aimed at my too-big stomach, too-muscular legs, broad shoulders, whatever....and wonder what I could have fueled had that directed energy been positive instead of negative. I'm determined to change that in this decade.
you are incredible
THANK YOU
Thank you for this wonderfully descriptive tour!