Anonymous wrote:What made me happy was NOT being with family. DH and I went to a resort and for the first time in my life I had a quiet, happy Christmas. No fighting. We missed a ton of drama too. My step-aunt and uncle pulled some crap and were kicked out of the house during Christmas dinner. We missed nothing.

That said, I agree that we live in a society that prizes youth above all else and that it can be easy to feel invisible as an older person. I find that having a wide group of friends from a variety of different age groups and walks of life really helps. I'm too busy having fun to notice.

No kids?

what made me happy was thinking how blessed I am, I live in a society where women are taken seriously, where we have tha basic things we need like hot water, food, and a place where to sleep, we have become in a society where nothing is enough, were we are greedy,how can we be happy when we dont appreciate what we already have

All debt paid off before Thanksgiving. Yippee!

What made me happy was NOT being with family. DH and I went to a resort and for the first time in my life I had a quiet, happy Christmas. No fighting. We missed a ton of drama too. My step-aunt and uncle pulled some crap and were kicked out of the house during Christmas dinner. We missed nothing.

That said, I agree that we live in a society that prizes youth above all else and that it can be easy to feel invisible as an older person. I find that having a wide group of friends from a variety of different age groups and walks of life really helps. I'm too busy having fun to notice.

what made me happy is being healthy

Thanks for sharing OP! I was thinking (also) that being together is the best joy. Your children's friends are lucky to have you. [Cue the it takes a village people who try to take advantage of others sunny disposition here. - what does not give me joy!]

We had a dinner party this past weekend and one of our guests made a comment that I have been thinking about. We were all in our late 50's. He said we have preptty much become invisible to the younger generation. Society, in general, has no use for us. Since my kids are flying the nest one by one, i have felt this way, at times.
When my kids came home, it was such a special time for me when their friends came over. They took the time to sit and visit with us and talk about old memories. I was a stay at home mom. One young man lost his mother shortly before we met him. He gave us a card saying how much our friendship meant to him. He said he always felt comfortable coming over and telling us about his mom, even whe my son was not around. My husband was out of the country a lot when they were growing up. I really got to know a lot of my kids friends and it brings me so much joy to hear them talk about how much that meant to them.
These visits brought me so much joy. I suppose we all feel invisible outside our little worlds. Maybe more so in the culture we live in now.
I am babbling, but it feels good to share!