Karen Putz - A Deaf Mom Who Walks on Water

Wanda Schlafly: Creating a Business Out of Capturing Stories

March 17, 2017 By Karen Putz Leave a Comment

Like many in the corporate world in mid-life, Wanda Schlafly was burned out. She worked in the business world but felt burned out. She liked her job, she just didn’t love it. As a Supply Team Manager overseeing more than 50 employees, she loved helping and encouraging people to shine at their jobs but she often found her creativity being dismissed by the upper management team. “In a male-dominated management field, there was no appreciation for me being a woman,” Wanda explained. “They told me, ‘Don’t get emotional, don’t be passionate.'”

Yet, emotion and passion were so much a part of her personality that Wanda found it difficult to stifle both while leading her team.

When the company offered to double her pension at the age of 55, Wanda took the retirement escape. Yet, she certainly wasn’t content to just drift through the second half of life with nothing to do. “I wanted to do something that allowed me to be more free–that showed the world who I am,” Wanda said.

The purchase of an iPad gave Wanda an idea: she could offer classes to senior citizens and show them how to navigate this piece of technology. During her visits to senior centers and assisted-living homes, Wanda met 100-year-old Louie and she was fascinated by the memories he shared of his life. Louie was the youngest of ten and had ten children as well. During one of their visits, Wanda set up her video camera and captured the stories as Louie reminisced. She added pictures to the video and presented it to him and his children.

“They loved it,” Wanda said. “I started filming other stories, including the Women Entrepreneurs Secrets of Success networking group. That’s when I decided to shift the focus of my business to capturing stories.” Sunshine Video was born.

Soon, Wanda became known as the Story Gal, the one who could bring out the memories and stories of the older generation. For Wanda, the business meant stepping out of her comfort zone and learning new things for the various parts of her company–mastering YouTube, editing, and learning to network for the first time. Whenever she became stuck, she simply saw the challenge as a new opportunity to learn. “My business empowers me, I wake up every day looking forward to the day–what can I do, what can I learn, how can I get better at what I do–instead of of ‘oh my god it’s another day or whatever.’ I wake up feeling happy about being alive.”

The people she filmed fascinated her. 104-year-old Isabelle, a mom to six children, lost her husband when she was 65. The war refugee from Lithuania who shared her memories at her 100th birthday party.

“I’ve some of the most amazing people–they don’t let age get in the way or their circumstances–they keep their minds and bodies active,” Wanda said. “They inspire me to live a better life and makes me want to live a more full life.

“This experience has changed my views on aging,” she continued. “I never thought about the process of becoming older. I think people tend to forget older people–they are still people living their lives, they still are human, still need interaction and love, they are still apart of our society. I would like to see more interaction between seniors and children. We should put daycare centers in senior centers and let them interact! We have only a short amount of time in front of us to capture stories from our elderly loved ones. Their lives and values were very different from the generations that have followed. They aren’t captured on Facebook or in automatic photo albums. They have lived through the Great Depression and World War II and gave birth to the Baby Boomers. They grew up before TV and the internet. I feel so blessed when families let me into their lives and help to capture the essence of their family values, lives and times. It really doesn’t get any better than that!”

Howard Rosenman: Producing, Writing, and Still Going Strong

January 23, 2017 By Karen Putz 2 Comments

In the fall of 2016, I sat in the audience at the 140 Conference in Los Angeles, waiting for my turn to speak. Four interpreters in training silently rotated their shifts in front of me, their hands translating the words of one ten-minute presentation after another. There was a dizzying array of speakers, many names that were unfamiliar to me.

I watched with interest as Howard Rosenman took the stage. I didn’t recognize his name, but I recognized the movies he produced: Father of Bride, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The Family Man.

I sat mesmerized as he spoke. I always recognize people who are truly passionate–there’s an energy about them that’s electrifying and exciting.

What was his story, I wondered. How did he end up producing those blockbuster movies?

I got in touch with Howard and he answered my questions with such passion that my fingers could hardly type notes fast enough.

Howard was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Queens, New York. From a very young age, Howard loved going to the movies and he wanted to be an actor. At the age of nine, he narrowed down his focus: he wanted to be a producer. Howard shifted directions after high school–he graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in Literature and then decided to become a doctor. After two years in medical school, Howard headed overseas with a cousin to serve as a medic in the Six Day War. “My parents are seventh generation Jews, I have thousands of cousins living in Israel.”

Thirty days later, Howard met Leonard Bernstein, a conductor, pianist, and composer from the New York Philharmonic.

“I know a guy just like you back in New York,” he told Howard.

Indeed, Howard had previously worked as a waiter in a New York restaurant and Mr Bernstein recognized him. He gave Howard tickets to his concert. At a party afterwards, the two of them talked and really connected. Right then and there, Leonard offered him a position to join his film crew as a gofer for an upcoming documentary, Journey to Jerusalem. As they worked together, Howard found himself enjoying the whole process of filming and creating the documentary.

Howard returned to the hospital to continue his journey to become a doctor. In the middle of assisting an operation for an amputation, Leonard’s words reverberated in his thoughts:

“You are a storyteller. You will never bow to the mistress of science, you’re too passionate for the arts.”

Howard made up his mind–he was going to go to New York and pursue a totally different path with Leonard as his mentor. It’s a path that lead to over 40 years of Hollywood and many movie stars as friends. “Making movies and storytelling, that’s my passion,” Howard said.

And passion, Howard says, is something that you love so much that you will go through any obstacles to do it.

Today, Howard is 71 and he’s busier than he’s ever been. He’s currently working on a book, a mini-series, and a documentary all at once. The movie business continues to be a tough one to navigate as the average time between conception to screen is seven years and some take as long as twenty. Through it all, Howard’s energy and passion have remained high. He’s doing what he truly loves to do. While ageism is rampant in Hollywood, especially for older actors, Howard has some advice for people who are navigating their mature years: “Stay passionate! Have patience and tenacity.”

“Let me tell you about my mother,” he continued. “At the beginning of the century, she was six years old and walking to school when the Nazis came up to her and pushed her down. She got up and continued to walk. They pushed her down again. She picked up her books, dusted off her dress, and continued to walk. Tenacity–that’s the lesson I got from that.”

So, of all the movies you’ve produced, which one is your favorite, I asked.

“All of them are my favorite,” he said. “You spend so much time on them that you’re so in love. If you don’t have the love of them, you can’t produce them.”

Now that’s passion.

One Leg? No Problem

October 12, 2016 By Karen Putz 2 Comments

When Sam Bell was thirteen, he had no idea that an ordinary practice session of cricket would change his life. Sam was in middle school in Sydney, Australia when a teammate tackled him and injured his knee. Sam continued to practice and run, but his knee never seemed to heal.

The doctors were perplexed; they could not figure out the reason his knee would not improve. Three months later, they had a diagnosis: cancer.

After two months of chemotherapy and no improvement, the doctors suggested amputation.

“On the day of the amputation, I was naive at the time, I wasn’t really aware of how bad the cancer was,” Sam recalled. “They told me it was the only option. I was pretty upset.”

Sam spent seven long days in the hospital and then three weeks recuperating before being fitted with a temporary prosthetic attached to the cast. Those three weeks after surgery were tough on him. It was a time of bewilderment–of figuring out a new life and questioning his identity as a person without a limb.

“I was young and I was struggling,” Sam said. “I just had to learn how to deal with it. I was so focused on the physical part of it–how to learn to move again, not the emotional part.”

The prosthetic leg was uncomfortable at first. Sam often pushed his limits, wearing the prosthetic for 12 hours each day, causing his leg to swell. Each time it happened, he would have to rest his leg for a few days before trying again.

Six months later, he was playing sports again. He did not play contact sports–there was some concern that the prosthetic leg would fly off and hit someone–so he turned to the winter sport of target shooting.

After high school, Sam became a jackaroo, the Australian term for cowboy. For fifteen months, he did “yard work,” riding a horse and corralling the 25,000 cattle on a Queensland ranch. He transferred to three different ranches in Minnesota, Wyoming, and Iowa as part of a ranch exchange program.

A year after his leg was amputated, Sam tried water skiing behind his cousin’s boat. As hard as he tried, he just couldn’t get up on a single ski. Ten years later, he tried again with the same results. He decided to ditch the ski, figuring it might be easier to get up on his bare foot. “No one knew what to do,” Same said. “I tried sitting on a wakeboard and getting up from that, but I failed again and again.”

Sam really wanted to learn to water ski, so he persisted and finally became skilled at riding a ski. He still wanted to learn to barefoot. Every Tuesday, he skied with a group of guys and two of them could barefoot. None of them had any real idea how a guy with one foot could learn the sport.

Sam was stubborn. For nine months, he beat himself up on the water riding on his back and enduring crash after crash.

“I’m not sure what kept me going, but once it was in my blood, I just decided I wanted to succeed.”

Then one morning, he stood up. He was finally barefooting!

“I was so excited, I crossed the wake,” Sam recalled.

For ten years, Sam just had fun on the water and enjoyed the sport. Two years ago, at the age of 38, he entered his first barefoot water skiing tournament. There was a dilemma at first–how were the judges going to score him? In the sport of barefooting, you get points for doing a trick on one foot and then on the reverse foot. Sam and the judges came to an agreement on how to score his runs.

“I don’t see myself as disabled and I don’t like being labeled disabled,” Sam said. “What I like about barefooting is that I’m competing fully against my mates. I have to work harder, but I’m not disabled in the barefooting world–I have to follow the same rules.”

In some ways, Sam sees his one foot as an advantage. He has no choice but to learn the harder tricks on one foot while some of his mates are being scored on two feet. This actually gives him higher scores with each run.

Sam is seen as one of the “older” athletes in an extreme sport that is flush with young kids, but he believes that the opportunity to win is equal for everyone. Despite juggling a full-time construction business and being a dad to two young kids, Sam makes the one and half hour drive every chance he can get so he can train on the water.

“Passion is something that draws you, that motivates you, and I suppose in my life at this moment I have two passions: my kids and barefooting. If you want to do something, you have to seize the opportunity to do it,” Sam explained. “The approach might be different for an older athlete–a different path or a different journey–and success might take longer, but a successful outcome is possible if you work hard.”

Oh, and another thing: mindset is extremely important when it comes to affecting outcomes. Sam’s mental toughness comes in part from losing a limb at a young age, but being mentally tough is something we can all learn at any time.

“If your mind is made up, anything is possible,” Sam said. “And if you really want something, get up and get it!”

Check out Sam Bell in a tournament: Sam Bell 2016 Trick Finals

Karen Putz is an author, speaker, and Passion Mentor who helps others unwrap their passions at any age. For fun, she walks on water with the assistance of a rope, boat, and driver. Connect with Karen via Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and her website: Ageless Passions.

Dr. Perlmutter: Five Tips to Maximize Your Life

September 13, 2016 By Karen Putz Leave a Comment

“Though some consider the beating heart to be the center of life (after all, it’s the heartbeat we seek in those first few weeks of life), it’s really the brain that takes center stage. Our heart wouldn’t beat without our brain, and it is our brain that allows us to experience the world on every level–to feel pleasure and pain, to love and to learn, to make decisions, and to participate in life in ways that make it worth living!”

–an excerpt from Grain Brain

Dr. David Perlmutter, a Board-Certified Neurologist and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition, has a simple way to transform your health:

Ditch the grains from your diet.

Dr. Perlmutter is the author of several books, including Grain Brain and Brain Maker. The two of us connected through Garden of Life (Karen Putz, GOL Ambassador) where he is known for his probiotic products. He recently released the Grain Brain Cookbook, featuring over 150 recipes that are gluten-free. I received all three books in the mail from his office and recently sat down to read them.

After reading the first book, Grain Brain, I had a tough time enjoying the bundt cupcakes that my mortgage broker gave me after moving into our new place.

And that’s exactly the result that Dr. Perlmutter is hoping to get: optimize your brain and your health by ditching the processed foods, carbohydrates, and sugar. The current trend of eliminating gluten from our diets may be just the thing we need for whatever ails us and Dr. Perlmutter is intensely passionate about getting that message out.

His mission is also personal: he lost his father to Alzheimer’s for many years–and he wanted to understand the cause and progression of the disease. Dr. Perlmutter’s father was a neurosurgeon and he often brought his son in the operating room as a teen, teaching him all about the brain. “My father was a brilliant brain surgeon who taught me the important of compassion,” Dr. Perlmutter said. “He set an example by his life and his work. His passing was from Alzheimer’s, ironically, it’s the major focus of my life work, but the positive part of the experience has been one that lead me to even higher level of dedication to brain work.”

Alzheimer’s is a preventable disease, he says, in his blog post, Your Brain, Your Choice.

Think of gluten as glue. For years, we’ve been inundated with the message that whole grains are wonderful for us. When my mother suffered three heart attacks twenty-three years ago, her doctor’s advice was “more grains, less fat.” My mother loaded up on wheat bread and oatmeal, and avoided avocados and butter because of the high fat content.

Dr. Perlmutter himself thought that advice was sound in his early days of being a doctor. Today, he says the absolute opposite is true. Our brains need essential fats to function optimally.

So what are we supposed to be eating instead?

Here’s a quick list:

Avocados, mercury-free/wild fish, grass-fed/free range meats, olive/avocado/walnut oils, whole eggs, and leafy greens. For a more complete list: Dr. Perlmutter’s Gluten-Free Foods.

Many of the recipes from the Grain Brain Cookbook were developed by Dr. Perlmutter’s wife, Leize.

Dr. Perlmutter and his wife met on a blind date. Two weeks later, he proposed. They’ve been married 30 years and have a son and a daughter.

“So what’s the secret to a long-lasting marriage?” I asked.

“I think it’s having a sense of gratitude and understanding that no one is perfect,” Dr. Perlmutter said. “If you look into long range goals, you realize that the day-to-day issues are not really important. In any marriage or relationship, you have to understand that the union is more important than the parts– meaning each person brings something to the marriage that’s more valuable than adding up the virtues of the individual.

“And one more piece of advice: never go to bed angry!”

Giving to others is a surefire way to enjoy our lives, Dr. Perlmutter told me. After his father retired, he became a stockbroker, but came to realize that he wasn’t satisfied with that direction of his life. So he turned to giving–and opened a free clinic for those who could not afford health care. “We benefit by sharing our experiences and gifts with others,” Dr. Perlmutter said. “I demonstrate gratitude every day. Each of us have one or more gifts that can be utilized to demonstrate gratitude.”

Despite his years of research and bestselling books, Dr. Perlmutter has his share of critics who slam his work. He merely shrugs them off and continues on his mission to improve the health of others by sharing his knowledge and experience.

“Ronald Reagan said that, ‘Status quo is a Latin term meaning ‘the mess we are in.’ This means, to me, if we don’t challenge the status quo, we will not make progress,” Dr. Perlmutter said. “I clearly understand that my work challenges mainstream thinking. There’s a huge resistance to change and that’s okay– we have to embrace the outliers. My hope is that my work won’t be considered ‘outside the box,’ but to make the box bigger. The new ideas will eventually become inside the box–and that’s progress.”

Dr. Perlmutter’s Top Five Tips to Maximize Your Life:

Aerobic Exercise Every Single Day Get the body moving aerobically– a body that moves is a body that will keep going for a long time. Put in a minimum of 20 minutes a day–and more is better. Water skiing, running, and biking are Dr. Perlmutter’s favorite ways to keep moving.
Don’t Just Feed Your Body, Fuel Your Body Eat a low sugar, low carbohydrate, high healthy fat diet. For tips and recipes of what to eat, you’ll find those in Dr. Perlmutter’s cookbook. His favorite, ultimate recipe is the Mustard-Glazed Salmon, recipe below.
Set Up a Gratitude Practice Every day, show or express gratitude. This simple practice shifts your own energy and the energy of those around you. Dr. Perlmutter and his wife begin each day reading something inspirational and practicing gratitude.
Surround Yourself with People Vigorously engage in social interactions–become involved in your community and meet new people.
Get Creative Find ways to express your creativity. Continue to learn something new each day.

Special offer from Dr. Perlmutter: Pre-order The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan and receive a free Brain Change DVD.

One of Dr. Perlmutter’s favorite recipes is the Slow-Roasted Salmon with Mustard Glaze, found in the Grain Brain Cookbook:

(Serves 4)

6 tbls unsalted butter, room temperature (plus more for greasing the pan)

1/4 cup finely ground raw almonds

2 tbls chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest

4 (5-ounce) skinless salmon fillets

Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Generously butter a shallow baking dish large enough to hold the fish without crowding.

Place the butter in a small mixing bowl. Add the almonds, parsley, mustard, mustard seeds, and lemon zest and use a rubber spatula to knead and blend thoroughly.

Spread and equal portion of the butter mixture over the top of each salmon fillet. Season with salt and pepper to taste and then transfer to the roasting pan.

Place in the preheated oven and roast just until the fish is barely cooked through and the top is glazed, about 20 minutes.

Dale Irvin, Stumbling into a Funny Career

August 19, 2016 By Karen Putz Leave a Comment

In a serious world, Dale Irvin likes to find the funny moments. In fact, Dale is so talented at turning ordinary situations into knee-slapping laughter that he does this for a living.

He’s a Professional Summarizer.

Say what?

Dale goes to meetings, conferences, and events–listens to every word spoken, and then presents to the audience with a funny, custom-made commentary that is sure to get the audience laughing. Even at themselves.

For years, Dale worked in advertising and had a job with regular (for the most part) hours. For fun, he took a class at Second City in Chicago and decided to start a career in comedy. He made the rounds at cheesy bars during open mic nights and honed his craft.

Then he was fired from his day job. It was time to figure out if he could make a living with comedy. He spent five years on cruise ships, entertaining audiences through calm and rough seas.

“In my early days of comedy there were lots of times when the audience didn’t think things were funny–there were some nights when I bombed–but I never wanted to give up, I just wanted to do better next time,” Dale said. “The thing with comedy–it’s hit or miss. You try to have more hits than miss and sometimes you read the audience wrong. It’s never fun when they don’t laugh–when the audience thinks they are getting someone funny and it doesn’t happen–you have to be ready for that and prepare yourself. Just remember, you will get over it.”

Dale shifted his direction to speaking at corporate gigs once he discovered he could earn more as a professional speaker. “The first real speech, I remember it well,” Dale recalled. “I knew how to perform on the stage, I knew how to be funny , it was just a different audience–suits and ties instead of jeans and t-shirts–and most of them were not drunk, so that was different.”

Dale took on more and more corporate gigs and became a member of the National Speaker Association. During a winter workshop in 1992, Dale became the emcee for a talent show. In an impromptu move, he started summarizing the events and the audience responded with great laughter. The National Speaker Association asked him to summarize the summer convention. What started out as improv comedy turned into a yearly event. In 1995, he was inducted into the Speaker Hall of Fame.

By word of mouth, Dale’s reputation grew. He was doing as many as 200 gigs a year, customizing and improvising each presentation with almost no preparation time. Three years ago, he cut back on the number of speaking engagements and penned several books. Every week, he hosts Friday Funnies, a weekly show on YouTube, summarizing the news and entertaining people from his studio at home.

“You’re never too old to get into this business, people close to retirement can do this,” Dale said. “It’s very fulfilling. People always ask me where to find work; my first piece of advice: get good at your speech, good at what you’re saying to people, and jobs will come. Start at the Kiwanis or Rotary club and once you get good, everything will work out. Talk as often as you can, in front of whatever audience you can, until you are perfect–then you can go out and charge people money.”

And for fun, Dale often jumps on one of his two Harley Davidson motorcycles and goes for a ride. One of his most memorable trips was along Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica with 400 other riders–10 days of sun, stories, and yes, laughter.

The Gift of Giving Comes Back to You

July 15, 2016 By Karen Putz Leave a Comment

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Konenkii, a very cool discovery box company. Get your own subscription or gift to a friend at http://www.konenkii.com, where the promo code BOLDER10 will get you 10% off!

“For it is in giving that we receive.”
― Francis of Assisi

I loved the joy on my friend’s face when she opened her Konenkii box. Sue LaFauce and I have been friends since our college days. We’ve gone through many ups and downs over the years, confiding in each other at every turn. Friendships like that are priceless. So when Jan Craige Singer and Sarah White offered me the opportunity to review the Konenkii summer box, I asked if I could give it to Sue.

But of course, they said.

That’s exactly the premise they’ve based their company on, the gift of giving. Giving to yourself, giving to others.

The gift boxes are just the beginning of the company; there’s more to Konenkii’s vision of inspiring and empowering women: connection is next. Jan and Sarah plan to use Konenkii as a platform to bring women together to share experiences and celebrate their lives. They’re passionately driven to redefining aging, something we do here at Growing Bolder.

“Passion is deep within you, no one else can know how it works for you,” Sarah explained. “It is feeling so strongly about something that you want to follow that dream.”

“Passion is about searching, it’s about never being satisfied,” Jan said. “I know it sounds like the opposite of what many people say about passion, but if you’re satisfied, it means you’re inert. for me, passion is constantly exploring. You’re in the flow–you get lost in it.”

It is that very passion that finds Jan and Sarah spending hours searching for just the right gifts to put in each box every quarter. They want every box to be opened with anticipation, wonder, and yes, passion, too.

You can read more about Konenkii and the inspiration behind the name: Why Pampering is Important.

Jan and Sarah also surprised me with a summer box of my own. I had just returned from Austria and was kicking myself for not buying a scarf while I was out there. I was looking for something free-flowing and casual, something that would go with blue jeans. I found one at a shop and intended to go back to get it, but we didn’t make it back to that shop.

So when I pulled out the first item from the box, my mouth fell wide open–it was a beautiful cream and blue scarf! I was so excited that I had to share it on social media, even though Sue hadn’t yet opened her box.

Finally, Sue and I were able to mesh our schedules and meet up so that I could see her open the Konenkii box. Sue also went right for the scarf the minute she opened the box. I think the joy on her face mimics the same that I felt when I opened mine! Take a look: She Loves the Scarf! We also found delicious cookies, inspirational postcards (with the stamp on them!), a plant in a shell (really!), body butter (don’t eat this one!), a zippered bag, and more.

The Summer Box is sold out, but you can order a Fall Box for yourself or for a friend. The code, BOLDER10 will give you 10% off. Every box is special, you will get something fabulous to eat, to wear, to read, or share. Every single gift is selected with the intention to ease, educate, and empower you.

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Konenkii, a very cool company started by two friends who believe that we can all face the aging process fearlessly while having fun. When you sign up for a Konenkii box, you can choose between quarterly subscriptions or special one-time shipments. Each discovery box comes with different items, hand selected to give you something fabulous to eat, wear, read or share. Remember that you can get your own Konenkii subscription or gift to a friend at http://www.konenkii.com, where the promo code BOLDER10 will get you 10% off!

Why I Hang Out with an Older Crowd

July 14, 2016 By Karen Putz Leave a Comment

“Meet us at the boat launch at 6:45 a.m.”

I got up at 5:15 in the morning to drive over an hour to meet my friends for a morning of barefoot water skiing.

That’s what passion does to you. It’s the fuel that gets you through the slog so you can enjoy the things you love to do.

I met this group of friends five years ago when I first got back into the sport. Patrick, Loren, and Jenny Blake, and Ben Hough. When I met them, I was training for my first tournament. Being a deaf skier, it’s always a challenge to lipread new people and I was a bit nervous because I was such a “greenie” in the competitive aspect of the sport.

I think we were all nervous at first, but we quickly became friends because we recognized the same level of passion in the sport among all of us.

But let me back up a bit here…

At the age of 44, I felt old. I had long ago abandoned the sport of barefoot water skiing after a hard fall as a teen caused me to lose a lot of hearing–effectively rendering me deaf. My journey back into the sport was inspired by an “Old Lady.” Now, before you get all indignant about me calling her old, you should know that is actually her nickname. Judy “The Old Lady” Myers discovered barefoot water skiing when she was 53. My introduction to Judy was via the TODAY Show, which featured her at 66 years of age gliding across the water with a big grin on her face.

All of a sudden, my whole paradigm of aging shifted big time.

If this 66-year-old could take up an extreme sport at the age of 53, then what the heck was MY excuse at 44?

I didn’t have one.

Judy got me back on the water with a lesson from a two-time World Barefoot Champ and Growing Bolder captured the story here: A Mom Who Walks on Water. More of Judy’s story is here: The Barefoot Competitor.

So when I watch Ben Hough on the water, I’m inspired all over again about the possibilities that lie ahead of me in growing older. Because you see, Ben is 74 years old. Like Judy, he has the energy of a 21-year-old when he’s barefoot water skiing. Like Judy, he competes in barefoot tournaments against other 70+ year olds.

Take a look at Ben during his training:

So you know what happens when you hang out with people who are older than you and they’re doing the stuff you love to do–you become inspired. The idea of “growing older” gets replaced with the excitement of growing bolder. All of a sudden, you look forward to the years ahead instead of dreading the candles on the cake.

And that’s exactly why I hang out with the active, passionate older crowd.

No matter what age you are, you can choose a different path than the one you’re currently on if it’s not fulfilling you. And don’t tell me you’re too old, or I might have to introduce you to the story of 109 year old Alfie Date, who started a whole new career of knitting sweaters for penguins when he moved into an assisted living facility. (He passed away peacefully at the age of 110.)

A Friendship That Keeps Getting Stronger and Growing Bolder

June 17, 2016 By Karen Putz 2 Comments

Earlier this year, the team from Growing Bolder introduced me to Konenkii, a gift company that puts together unique products for women. I had the chance to talk to Jan and Sarah, the founders of this Konenkii. You can read more of their story here: A Company Born from a Friendship.

In honor of Konenkii and friendship, I’m going to gift the Summer box to Sue LaFauce, a dear friend of mine. After all, Konenkii is –BFF– Bold. Fearless. Fun. and perfect for your BFF!

Sue and I met 32 years ago in a dorm hallway at Northern Illinois University. We became fast friends. I had just become deaf a few weeks before and Sue was hard of hearing. I would learn sign language and Sue signed slowly so I could understand her.

The following year we became roommates. We both love the color purple and we decorated our dorm with purple comforters, purple rugs and a white curtain. We covered our bulletin board with purple fabric and edged it with white lace. That year, we won an award for the best decorated dorm room.

Our friendship went south at times when we discovered we had very different sleep and study patterns. The next year we selected different roommates but we continued to remain friends.

After college our friendship continued to grow stronger despite living 45 minutes away from each other. We got married and we each had three kids. We spent many days with six kids in tow — going shopping, doing sleepovers, and yearly vacations at a water park.

Sue is one of the strongest women I know. Despite two divorces and raising three kids on her own, Sue went back to school to get a degree in medical coding. After working a few years in hospitals, she discovered her own soul was slipping away. So once again she took a leap of faith and went into insurance sales. Today she greets each day with joy, and she loves meeting new people through her work.

Last fall, her son Matthew became sick with a cold that triggered an attack of ataxia, leaving him unable to walk or talk. It has been a long road to recovery and Matthew is making progress.

So when I heard http://www.konenkii.com was coming out with the summer box, I knew it would be the perfect gift for Sue. Every Konenkii box is a delightful experience — with something to wear, eat, and learn. Each box brings the gift of pampering, because we all deserve a little something special.

Check back for a future post from Sue and me, as we open her box and celebrate the many years of friendship!

The Gift of a Living Memorial

May 9, 2016 By Karen Putz 13 Comments

My mom didn’t want a funeral. She didn’t even want a memorial service.

Mom was battling congestive heart failure. One can live a long time with this condition and no one really knows how fast or slow it can progress. And my mom was tough. Resilient. Persistent. She battled through every symptom with aggravation at first, then grit.

She was in and out of the hospital so many times the last two years that it became her routine. Last summer, we thought we were coming close to losing her. She couldn’t walk and was very weak.

But Mom wasn’t ready to let go of this life–she still had some living to do. Heck, she had just moved into a new house in Nashville and she was going to enjoy it. So she got herself out of the hospital bed and began walking with a walker again. She was doing so well at one point that she could get around the house on her own.

Then the final downward spiral began quickly. This time, we sensed it was real. A sprint towards the end. My brother and I got in the car and drove to Missouri to pick up my sister. One brother flew in. Another drove in. For the first time, all six of us were together, including a brother who was adopted at birth.

Three months, the staff at the hospital said. In my heart, I knew they were wrong. My mom wasn’t even moving. The fluid had taken over her body. We brought her home and arranged for nursing care three times a week.

When the hospice nurse arrived, we asked her that blunt question: How much time is left?

There’s a fine line that hospice nurses must walk–the line between hope and reality. Very gently, she let us know that time was dwindling and we must enjoy what we could.

So we gave Mom a living memorial. It wasn’t planned. The process simply unfolded each day. We flooded the house with food, people, and memories. We watched old family videos. We cooked her favorite foods. We sang songs. We celebrated her life.

And we cried.

Through it all, something magical was happening. Mom was happy. It was a beautiful thing to see her smiling each day, surrounded by love.

Then at two in the morning, she told my daughter, “I’m going to die.”

Two hours later, she fell into a coma and the next day, she took her last breath surrounded by her family.

Some of us struggled with Mom’s wishes to leave earth without a final service in her honor, but instead, she left us the amazing gift of all of us together during her last days of life.

Cross posted at AgelessPassions.com

Being Beautifully Human

April 10, 2016 By Karen Putz 5 Comments

It’s a rainy, dull, “ache-in-my-bones” kind of day here in Chicago.

I feel crappy.

Affirmations are not working. I try giving myself a pep talk but it falls flat. I’ve been sitting in front of the computer trying to edit a book I’m writing and…nothing. There’s no flow. Every word is a struggle. One of my favorite songs drones on and on, and I hardly realize I’ve been playing the same song on a repeat cycle.

I’m grouchy.

Really grouchy.

My snippy attitude this weekend has my husband slamming pots and pans from the dishwasher into the cabinet. The stress of an upcoming move is getting to us. We’re learning to let go of the stuff we’ve accumulated over the years, yet we’re having a hard time agreeing on what to part with and what to keep. At the moment, we can’t even agree on paint colors to freshen the walls with. It seems ironic that we’re finally giving the house an updated look, and we won’t be around to enjoy it. For us, moving ranks high on the stress scale.

The cold seems to seep through my bones. I was just in Maui–I have no right to complain, yet I do.

I need a nap. I need a workout. I need to lose 20 pounds. I need to create a powerpoint. I need to pack. I need to be a better mom, a better daughter, a better cousin. I need to do this… and that… I need a reset button to push somewhere.

Yet, do I really? Do we really?

We often beat ourselves up pretty good when we should be embracing who we are. We take it easy when we could be pushing the limits. We push ourselves to do more when we could be rejoicing in what we have now. We hold back, we say too much, we cross the lines, and we fumble. We start up again, over again, or off in a new direction.

It’s called being beautifully human.