Our Stories
Crow's Feet is a publication where writers explore what it means to age. Here you'll read stories about people finding new sources of creative energy in their 50s and later while others are confronting the heavy weight of ageism that threatens to diminish all of our later years.
Join us to discover that life as we age brings laughter, joy and memories that shape who we are today.
Join us to discover that life as we age brings laughter, joy and memories that shape who we are today.
Clothes: Fashion or Function? By The Write Yard
.How the importance of clothes has changed as I grow older.
I used to dress to impress. Spent time doing my hair and put on a little make-up, not much, but a little definition around the eyes and maybe a touch of lip gloss.
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Aging Hands by Mark Tulin
I took a road trip
along the lines
of my palms,
gray and worn,
hands of experience,
wonderful rivers,
dark valleys,
and mountains
still to climb
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along the lines
of my palms,
gray and worn,
hands of experience,
wonderful rivers,
dark valleys,
and mountains
still to climb
READ THE FULL POEM
A Message from the Other Side by Anna I. Smith
Or is it just an annoying bird and menopause?
It’s 5 a.m. A screeching, sharp twitter like no other wakes me up.
I try to but can’t go back to sleep. Thirty years ago I’d wake up and fall asleep without a problem. Now things are different. Now my on-off switch gets stuck in the on position. It’s ironic. When I finally have the opportunity to set my own schedule, when it’s just the two of us with no next day obligations I wake up before the wildlife outside my window does. Menopause is cruel.
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I try to but can’t go back to sleep. Thirty years ago I’d wake up and fall asleep without a problem. Now things are different. Now my on-off switch gets stuck in the on position. It’s ironic. When I finally have the opportunity to set my own schedule, when it’s just the two of us with no next day obligations I wake up before the wildlife outside my window does. Menopause is cruel.
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Yoga and Breathing Provide Natural Relief for Stubborn Menopause Symptoms by Rose Bak
Twenty minutes a day can make a huge difference in how you feel.
Deposit photo.
If you join a conversation with women in their 50s invariably the conversation will turn to menopause.
“These hot flashes are killing me!” someone will exclaim, fanning themselves.
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“These hot flashes are killing me!” someone will exclaim, fanning themselves.
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Bleeding Out and Beginning Again by Ren Powell
Puzzle Tree by Ren Powell.
Heading toward a quarter moon. The light is slipping away. I’m not sure I’ve ever noticed the moon as often as I have these past weeks. I suppose in part because we run under the cover of trees so often on the dark mornings. And I suppose because conversation is distracting.
Leaving my phone in the house while I walk Leonard now first thing each day, the quiet can be intense. Especially these days with the clear skies.
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Leaving my phone in the house while I walk Leonard now first thing each day, the quiet can be intense. Especially these days with the clear skies.
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Juggling All. The. Things by Ann Litts
Photo by Joshua Woroniecki.
I’ve been retired now a little over two months. And frankly, I just don’t know how I ever made time to hold down a 40-hour+/week job! Because truly — I just don’t have the time (or inclination) to make that work anymore.
In my pre-retirement days, I heard horror stories of Humans who simply went adrift once they clocked out for the last time. Humans who were bored with retirement and went back to work at a new place just for something to do. Humans who languished on their couch watching Netflix and NCIS reruns. Humans who died shortly into retirement — because the adrenaline of their jobs was the only thing keeping them alive.
I was warned that I “better” find some hobbies if I wanted any quality of life in retirement. I was also told that I’d be so bored — I’d WANT to come back into the workforce by the end of the first six months.
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In my pre-retirement days, I heard horror stories of Humans who simply went adrift once they clocked out for the last time. Humans who were bored with retirement and went back to work at a new place just for something to do. Humans who languished on their couch watching Netflix and NCIS reruns. Humans who died shortly into retirement — because the adrenaline of their jobs was the only thing keeping them alive.
I was warned that I “better” find some hobbies if I wanted any quality of life in retirement. I was also told that I’d be so bored — I’d WANT to come back into the workforce by the end of the first six months.
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How to Grow Old With Youthful Spirit by Zoe Berry |
Photo by Cengizhan Konuş on Unsplash
Recently I have taken up a new mantra and it’s this:
“Live as though you will last forever but stay mindful that it could all be over tomorrow.”
It’s a blend of the stoic reminder Memento Mori, literally ‘Remember that you must die’ with a prompt based on my belief that in order to age well we should be willing to keep moving forward, be curious to learn new things and think new thoughts. It seems like a contradiction in terms.
Indeed Marcus Aurelius, known as the stoic Roman Emperor, wrote to himself:
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“Live as though you will last forever but stay mindful that it could all be over tomorrow.”
It’s a blend of the stoic reminder Memento Mori, literally ‘Remember that you must die’ with a prompt based on my belief that in order to age well we should be willing to keep moving forward, be curious to learn new things and think new thoughts. It seems like a contradiction in terms.
Indeed Marcus Aurelius, known as the stoic Roman Emperor, wrote to himself:
READ THE FULL STORY
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Talk to Me When I'm Old by Nancy Peckenham |
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Talk to me like I’m not there, And I will disappear. Talk about me, in front of me, a piece of furniture, And I will withdraw, resentful. The glazed look in my eyes will be a shield Against your stupidity. I’m not deaf and I sure am not dumb. I just can’t remember what I ate for breakfast. Tell me a story and I will feel The same passions you do. My feelings have not evaporated with my short-term memory. I am living. I am alive. Talk to me. |