When the Cranes Fly South: Book Review

 

Published in English
19 August 2025

This book uses a technique that helps readers have increased compassion for older adults experiencing their decline. I chose this book among candidates selected by Goodreads for earning a virtual bookmark for debut author. Because this was already translated from Swedish into English, I though that it must be a good book for the publisher to go to that expense. 

I am glad that I made this selection! When the Cranes Fly South is among my favorite reads for 2025 so far. 

Lisa Ridzén shows us more than one perspective about the main character, Bo, an older adult living by himself with his dog.  Bo is starting to experience some frailty so his adult son--Hans--sets up caregivers to assist Bo with meals, cleaning, and personal hygiene. Primarily, we read imagined conversations that Bo is having with his wife, Frederika, who has recently been moved into town to live in a care center given her growing memory issues. However, Bo's conversations alternate with notes left by four paid caregivers and notes left by the son.   

Oh, the discrepancy between Bo's view of himself and the caregiver's views are strikingly different. 

Fighting Fatigue with Healthy Lifestyle Choices

 

Image by Zaytsev Artem 
via Creative Commons

Anyone who is a teacher understands the shock that happens during the transition from summer to fall.  It happens every year. Usually, I try to keep pieces of my summer schedule once classes start up again.  I have learned to stay home during Labor Day weekend so that I can adjust my back-to-school schedule to be more realistic.  It's hard to let go of numerous exercise classes, lots of reading, working in the garden, and having lunch with gal pals. Nevertheless, some of that needs to be trimmed back. 

I found that this year, I had more fatigue than usual. Is my age a factor? 

Note: This post should not be used as medical advice. It is only meant to raise awareness. If you have any questions about being tired, sleepy, or fatigued, you should see a licensed medical professional. 

These types of habits help me combat fatigue, which I think are good for people of all ages: 

Indigenous Elders

 

Image by woodleywonderworks
via Creative Commons

During the summer of 2025, I had the opportunity to attend two powwows.  In the early summer, I attended one hosted in the ballroom of the student center at Brigham Young University. Then in early July, I attended the powwow hosted by the Ute tribe  outside of Fort Duchene as part of the Ute Reservation. (Ute means "Land of the Sun"). 

Most of the dances were organized by ages, which included competitions of older adults (all men or all women). Additionally, the procession into the arena at the Ute location had both veterans and older adults at the front of the procession.  I was a guest of a woman who is Ute, and she helped me understand etiquette.  She also emphasized the importance of older adults to the culture. 

Of course, I have long heard about the respected role that elders play in indigenous cultures: they are storytellers, keepers of important information for living off the land, healers, leaders, and more.  However, I do not fully understand the role of Indigenous elders because I am an outsider (and I always will be). However, I try to read at least one book a month about indigenous people. I am working at being an active listener to the messages in the statements made by people from the First Nations. 

I find it better if I refer people to reading the works by indigenous people themselves instead of having the message garbled (in content, tone, and style) if I try to summarize.  

Here are a few sources (with an acknowledgement that there may be glaring omissions): 

Hiking Bryce Canyon at 8,000 Feet above Sea Level

 

Bryce Canyon June 2025

I told myself that I was in great shape, given that I lift weights, swim, and attend yoga regularly each week. However, going on a hike in Bryce Canyon humbled me. 

My husband has an annual board meeting at Bryce Canyon each June, and this year I decided to go with him. One morning, a group of about ten of the thirty participants and their invited family members chose to do a hike at dawn before the meetings started. This is also a good strategy for managing the dry heat of Southern Utah. 

I expected the hike to be challenging but manageable. Well, I was the biggest whiner of the group! Why? 

Interest in My Scandinavian Kin

 

Ancestry.com Maps
Your Ancestors for You

Before moving to Sanpete County, my mother informed me that I had ancestors from Denmark on my father's side. 

I did not investigate this at all until I moved to a city that is nicknamed "Little Denmark."  There is a relatively new housing development in northeast Ephraim called Danish Fields. 

I belong to a heritage organization called Daughters of the Utah Pioneers.  During one meeting, the speaker asked all those who had Danish ancestry to raise their hands. 

Denmark is one of the three countries that constitutes Scandinavia along with Norway and Sweden.  Every May, Ephraim hosts the Scandinavian Festival, which is coming on the Friday and Saturday before Memorial Day--as always.  

I confess that in the weeks leading to Scandinavian Days this spring I have been reading voraciously about Vikings even though I have no idea if I have Viking blood. I work part time at the public library, and I am getting ready to help patrons learn more about these infamous Nordic people. 

Our Family Dog Crossed the Rainbow Bridge This Spring

 

My favorite photo of Bolt, taken April 2020
b. June 2008 - d. April 2025

Trigger warning. Description of a dog slipping into frailty and then going to the vet for one last trip. Not too physically graphic, but descriptions of the dog mom's sorrow. 

Everything that is living is aging.  Our beloved dog, Bolt, has been slowing down over the last couple of years.  He is a rescue dog, so we were not certain of his age when we adopted him at the end of October 2009, but the vet guessed that he was about 15 months old. In June of 2024, he turned 16, which was remarkable given that his probably breed (Indian Spitz) lives for an average of 12 years. 

We adopted him in Kansas when our children were about 11 and 8 years old. 

Kids with Bolt in Kansas, Fall 2009

More Community Building

 

Photo by Wren aka KDA

My WOTY (word of the year) for 2024 was "Community." However, I am still very focused on connecting with people in my new county.  In fact, I am obsessed with building bonds with a number of institutions and a number of people. 

It is challenging to move in your 60s. It's even more challenging to move to a rural area where many people my age are not open to forming new connections. Many women my age here already have their daughters, their daughters in law, and their best friends from elementary school. They do not have any time (nor the inclination) to connect with new people. I would probably be the same way if I had deep roots in my town. 

Nevertheless, I am spending a lot of time working to connect with people formally and informally. 

Dementia: Personal Experience

 

Image by Abhijit Bhaduri
via Creative Commons 

When I was pursuing my master's program in gerontology between 2010 and 2013, I decided to focus on issue of cognition and aging. My understanding of age-related causes of aging was very academic. Yes, I did volunteer at a multi-level care center for five years, but that pales in comparison with having a relative living with significant cognitive challenges. 

Cognitive Overload

 

Photo by Michael Reuter
via Creative Commons

A few months after I moved from Indiana to Utah, I started carrying a clear, plastic stadium purse? Why?  I kept losing my phone and my keys. I am in my early 60s, so some might assume that I am showing signs of dementia. However, I have another hypothesis. 

I have been experiencing cognitive overload. 

I was trying to manage too many new situations at once, and my brain could not process all of the demands: 

Tom Lake: Book Review

 

Published 1 Aug 2023

Oh, Tom Lake was a quiet yet powerful narrative. I am crying softly because Ann Patchett did such a good job weaving together characters, images, setting, and themes.

I am a middle aged woman, and this is a book about Lara, a middle aged woman, taking an inventory of her life by doing an oral life review for her three daughters. It's about the choices we make in life--particularly when we are in our 20s--and how those choices set us on a path for the decades to come.

Word of the Year: Meek

 

Image by BrayDawg
via Creative Commons

Instead of making New Year's resolutions, I choose a word of the year. (Here is an explanation.) This year I have selected the word "meek" as my focus word for 2025.  I have been gearing up for this for several days, and I can tell this is going to be challenging for me.  

This difficulty only convinces me that I need to work on being meek. 

Happy 13th Blogoversary

 

Image by eflon 
via Creative Commons

I started my blog on aging thirteen years ago today.  I realize that Instagram and TikTok are becoming more popular among the various social media platforms. However, I still like the blog format, and I use this blog primarily to record the results of my reading what experts say about various aspects of aging at midlife and late life. I also use this blog to record personal experience. 

Image by Takashi Hososhima
via Creative Commons

I do see the appeal of images and short video reels, but I have been teaching writing classes for over four decades, and I still value writing as a form of critical thinking (for myself) and as a medium for communication. 

Let's look at a couple of metrics for this blog. I hope that you find a post that interests you! 

The Top 10 posts Viewed in 2024

These are my evergreen posts: ones written in previous years but viewed by people using search engines. 

1. Movies about Love and Sex of People 50 Plus LINK

2. Robert C. Peck's Tasks for Older Adults LINK

3. Movies about Older Adults in the Dying Process LINK