I have witnessed the slow crawl of history, from the joy of one decade to the agony of the next, from the fear of one decade to the fantasy of the next; I have seen the ashes of what once mattered and shared the dream of what might be.
This book is based on my experience of the past 80 years, from just before WWII to the present. As an advocate for conscious aging and a creative writer, I am fascinated with how we remember and story our lives, often to our own disadvantage. Now, in these later years, I've set about the transformative task of unraveling my own fragmented journey - a constant struggle for survival, through the re-invention of one self after another. This is how I faced the painful truth that if I could not own all my experiences, especially those in my shadow, I could not begin to forgive or love myself enough to even dream of becoming a whole person.
The 71 stand alone (yet integrated) short stories in this book are drawn from more than 20 years writing, from meaning-making autobiography to revelations of conscious aging; from embracing the wisdom of vulnerability to learning to think with both the head and the heart.
"In my youth I would have insisted that I did not ask to be born to a teen-aged mother, without the presence of a father, in poverty and visually impaired, in 1935 Macon, Georgia. But now, I'm not so sure I didn't pre-order this life exactly as it has come to pass. My learning from adversity has been a blessing, and I don't know how else it could have been achieved."- Rabon Saip
Rabon was brought out of Georgia to Marin County, California, in 1944, and there began a life-long struggle to be seen as "normal." He bluffed his way through grammar and high school, but could not engage in college course work due to his eyesight. Nevertheless, determined to succeed at something, he risked driving to support a wide variety of job experiences, ever searching for a way to make a living. In the post war years of his youth, there really was no alternative. Then, years later, while single parenting with his baby son, he tearfully accepted the "disability" label and the stipend that came with it. He traveled to Mexico, apprenticed to a uniquely talented maestro of building furniture and stringed instruments, and thus began a twenty-five year love affair with woodworking. However, in 1991, Rabon's discovery of computer technology as a window into higher education changed everything. His intellectual awakening was dramatic. Even so, his rapid academic success, BA, MA, and almost PhD in Clinical Psychology was, by this time, secondary to a dawning elder awareness and the poetry of spiritual growth. To be of service to senior citizens as volunteer advocate and educator became a primary goal. He was deeply hopeful that the Longevity Revolution would change the world, but that remains a dream. Rabon collaborated on facilitating health care directives, a year-long workshop entitled "Planning for Your Longevity," developed a "Driving to Non-Driving" program for elders and their families; and, served for ten years (2010-2020) on the Advisory Council at his local Area Agency on Aging. He is currently a Hospice volunteer Grief Counselor.
