Give thanks for friends

‘I am not resigned to the shutting away of loving hearts in the hard ground,” is the opening line of Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem, “Dirge without Music.” I have been thinking of that line lately.

The recent death of my editor and mentor, Laura Crooks, brought it to mind. Her sudden passing was hard to accept and I realized that I had never used the recipe for Nanaimo Bars which was one of her specialties. Such a trivial thing but something I had told her I would do. Laura’s death follows on the heels of others I will miss: Jane Sheppard, Betty First, Ben McInturff, Grace Smith, Bill First, Ross Woodward, Betty Hennessey, Ken Degerness, Buddy and Martha Holder, Joyce McHenry, Gus Trapp, Charlie Hill and Jim Lorenz, (I fear I am missing someone).

But as I looked through my old battered Rolodex, I realized how many of you are still alive and thriving and enriching my life. And since this is the official month in which to give thanks, I want to do that now.

The four years since my husband Fran’s death have only been bearable because of the love of friends and family.

I echo the tribute, “When I count my blessings, I count you twice.”

Living and working longer

The Center for Retirement Research has reported that longer life spans, rising health-care costs and a decline in traditional pensions mean that men and women are working longer than they used to.

This is particularly true of female baby boomers who are finding that working longer may be the only way to avoid falling into poverty in later years.

U.S. Census Bureau figures show that 12 percent of women 65 and older are living in poverty, compared with 7 percent of men in the same age group. And because women live longer, they also spend more on health care. Even though women were able to save significantly less, averaging $24,000 compared with $40,000 for men, a bright spot is that unlike traditional pensions, company 401(k) plans are portable i.e., women tend to not lose their benefits when they change jobs or leave the work force.

And thinking of hardworking women, I salute Betty McInturff, Eva Lassman, Kay Lester, Barb Richardson who received Achievement Awards from the YWCA at its annual luncheon, as well as the young woman who was honored, Kahla Christine Noel.

In conclusion

Here is the the last stanza from the St. Vincent Millay poem:

“Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave.

Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind;

Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave.

I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned.”