Sixtysomething - Season Two-Ep 27_Season Finale - Where Have I Been?

Sixtysomething - Season Two-Ep 27_Season Finale - Where Have I Been

[00:00:00] It's Grace. I'm back, and I'm so glad you're here. This is the season finale of season two of the 60-Something podcast. So, you may be wondering, where have I been? Well, let's back up for a second. So why did I start 60-Something in the first place? Well, on April 8th, 2024, I was mad. You know, I was mad because of the estrangement with, uh, some of my kids and the ageism I continued to encounter from them and, [00:01:00] uh, progressively more and more.

I also started the podcast because I took a course, Jenna Kutcher's podcast course, and it really made me feel like I could do it and, do the tech.

And finally, I went through with it, starting the podcast, because my husband really encouraged me to do it. He's always my greatest supporter and biggest fan, and he made me feel empowered to start. Thank you, Aaron. And finally, I also think I did it because it's been kinda lonesome since my career came to a halt and my kids all left the nest and moved away.

I thought podcasting might help me find some [00:02:00] like-minded folks to connect with, and it has. You know who you are, and I'm so grateful to you. So anyway, that first year, oh, I was in the groove. I was doing my weekly episodes on so many relevant subjects, and I got a lot off my chest, too, about those... the estrangement and the ageism.

Felt good. I took a break after 17 episodes and launched into Season 2 in September 2024. Even though my release dates for the episodes were more sporadic, I did record and release 26 more episodes of Sixty Something. Then, dun-dun, in October [00:03:00] 2025, I was planning our anniversary episode. Me and my husband, we were having our 33rd wedding anniversary, but first I wanted to do another episode about estrangement because it was, it was just burning in my mind because something good had happened, and I just couldn't wait to share it.

But before I could get it written and recorded, well, something bad happened that sort of counteracted the whole thing, and everything went to hell. So I needed to rewrite the whole episode because, like, you know, I would be darned if I was gonna talk about how wonderful things were when they were really taking a sharp turn to awful.[00:04:00]

And then that got better as I was working on it. Things got a little better. I thought maybe I was being rash. So I went round and round a few times, and then the holidays came, and onto the back burner it all went. And then comes the dilemma. How do I return? What do I do now? I don't wanna quit. I still have a lot I wanna talk with you about regarding life after 60.

I'm hoping for many more conversations with you. But I really only wanna talk about things I'm passionate about now while diversifying a bit more and not getting stuck in, you know, estrangement and the things that really burn me up sometimes. [00:05:00] As you may recall, in the first two seasons of Sixty Something, we covered quite a bit of territory.

We explored what it really means to move through life after 60 with resilience, curiosity, humor, honesty, and heart. We talked about so many of the subjects that deeply affect us at this stage of life, relash- relationships with adult children, grandparenting Loneliness, grief, friendship, resilience, ageism, yes, retirement, health, sleep, pets, gratitude, faith, finding peace when life doesn't go according to plan.

I shared many personal stories and reflections along the way, and my hope has always been to create a space where you [00:06:00] feel understood, encouraged, and we all feel a little less alone. We also spent a great deal of time talking about reinvention and purpose, embracing our third act by starting businesses, learning new skills, exploring AI and technology, creating meaningful legacies, preserving family stories and photos, and rediscovering our creativity and our joy.

We discussed journaling, decluttering with legacy in mind, true crime television and movies that shaped us, and the emotional realities of family life in our time of life and aging. More than anything, I hope these first two seasons have reminded [00:07:00] you and all of us that life after 60 can still be vibrant, productive, creative, surprising, and deeply fulfilling.

As for 60-Something season three, I'd love for us to continue these real conversations about what life looks like now and what it and we can still become. The sky's the limit. My plan is for us to continue to talk about the big stuff, friendship, family, adult kids and grandchildren, loneliness, marriage, maybe even dating.

I don't know that much about dating in your 60s, but I can learn. Creativity, reinvention, and finding purpose and joy right here in [00:08:00] this stage of life. I also want us to take deeper dives into things like starting a business after 60, building a meaningful legacy by perf- preserving family stories and photos, and how to use our creativity more with exploring things like how to embark on projects like writing, as well as various ways of journaling How about learning to collage and even how to create AI-generated artwork for greeting cards and decorations?

Maybe you'd like to learn Canva

or simple steps to creating your own podcast. Yes. All of these as ways to express ourselves and stay vibrant and engage with the world around us. I'm especially excited about [00:09:00] continuing to explore artificial intelligence together in a way that feels approachable, inspiring, and fun. I'll share how I'm using AI in my own life and creative projects, along with candid conversations about the opportunities, questions, and concerns many of us have about this undeniable new part of our world, something that it's...

AI keeps changing almost every day. Let's talk about it. New this season, I'll be starting a Sixty-Something book club. More about that soon, but let me know if you'd like to nominate your favorite book. As you can tell, in season three of Sixty-Something, we'll be exploring new topics as well as continuing some of our most meaningful discussions [00:10:00] from the past two seasons.

I'm so excited about having more of these conversations with you about the things that matter most to us as we move through our 60-something years. We're still learning, still growing, and still creating exciting new adventures. I'll create a tentative guide for season three so you can take a look, see what the plan is.

I'll put it in the Facebook group. And I will also share it in my new email newsletter, which will be coming soon. Now, I'll make a commitment to you right here and now. I will never again take a break without telling you about it. And I'll try really hard not to take a long break again in the next two-plus years until I turn 70, [00:11:00] and then I'll decide whether or not to continue this podcast.

Seventy-Something? Well, it has a nice ring to it, don't you think? Just FYI, it's my intention to get this podcast on YouTube soon. It seems to be a requirement for podcasts these days. I'll let you know when that happens. You have been Such a wonderful, supportive audience. I sure have loved doing this podcast.

Thank you so much. I'll see you next time on Sixty Something, and we're talking a few days because this Thursday, May 21st, is my birthday, and I'll be doing a special episode. I'll tell you more about it on Thursday. Tune in and celebrate with me from [00:12:00] Vegas, baby. I'll see you then.

And in the meantime, don't forget, keep your sunny side up!