Facing 2009 .... yet another reason to reinvent

It seems I wrote a lot of stories about mid-life reinvention in 2008. We looked at reinventing yourself for retirement in a two-part series in the spring. In the summer, we ran a piece on ReJuveniles mid-lifers who were rediscovering the joys of skateboarding and other youthful pursuits. In September, I bared my messy desk for our ultimate clutter-busting guide. In November, we talked about writing legacy letters and the healing power of looking at the course of your own life. Looking back, it seems through these features PRIME has spent nearly a year exploring the positive, de-aging effects of willingly embracing change. Who knew we were ultimately preparing you, our readers, to cope with the upending of the economy and its effects on our collective lifestyles as we said "goodbye" to 2008. Though this month's feature is titled "What Boomers Want," it really exposes some of the things everyone wants at mid-life and beyond to know that they will be able to afford their retirement, whenever that is, to know they won't burden their children, to know that what they do still matters. If the themes and conclusions drawn by the study provided by the Institute for the Future prove correct, we'll all need every bit of our de-aging adaptability to survive and thrive in a world predicted to change dramatically over the next 20 years. Yes, we have immediate challenges facing us all right now, not the least of which are financial strains and, maybe reductions in our lifestyle. But as Dr. David Demo, Ph. D., gerontologist, professor at Miami Dade College and renown speaker on aging issues pointed out in this month's feature, these changes might actually be good for us in the long run. A return to simpler lifestyles including home-cooked meals, more time with spouses and family and entertainments such as playing board games and taking long walks together can actually promote healthier, brain-boosting lifestyles. Reinventing ourselves to cope with today's new reality may even, he suggests, be the secret to longevity. Even though 2009 will be a year of changes, it's nice to know they may ultimately be good for us. Debbie Gardner PRIME Editor