I was stuck in the Emergency Department – what we call A&E (Accident and Emergency) in the UK – with drops in my eyes on a late Friday afternoon. I had come because I had experienced ‘flashings’ in one eye. I had phoned two local opticians in the hope…

They say that the older you get, the more difficulties you have sleeping. This may be true, but I have always had trouble sleeping, so for me it is nothing new. I have read all the advice about how to avoid sleeping problems…

I recently had email contact with a woman who I met only once – and that was some 20 years ago. She is the best friend of someone I used to know and like, but who I haven’t seen for years because we don’t live near each other. In her email, the woman mentioned that she…

It all started three weeks ago when I was walking down the street, heading for my regular swim. I don’t love swimming laps, but I think it is good for me, and I try to keep it up at least once a week. This time would be nicer because I had arranged to have lunch…

I like to chat. I chat first thing in the morning about any problems I faced in the night. Then I chat at lunch about events of the morning, and I chat in the evening about the rest of the day…

I have two grandsons, now 14 and 18. They are not brothers, but cousins – one from my son and the other from my daughter. Both my children are amazingly different in their personalities and interests. Their respective sons are equally – if not more – different…

It is said that once a mother, you are always a mother. However old your son or daughter may be, they are always your children. This may be right, but it is a blessing and a curse. Most of us cannot escape it. This realisation came home to me…

I want to tell you about my day today. No, it wasn’t a bad day, the sort of day that we often want to talk about, when everything goes wrong. It was a good day, of the sort we much too often take for granted. Here are a few tips for celebrating the simple things in life…

I am not a campaigner. I don’t have the right personality. But there is one issue I would love to see others campaign on – the word ‘old’. No one will say ‘old’ about themselves or their friends. They will say ‘older’ or ‘senior’ or ‘elder’ or any number of other words…

You know you should do your pelvic floor exercises. You have known for years – decades, even. You intend to do them, but somehow don’t get around to them. Or you do a few now and then. That’s not good enough ­­– you know that, too…