Paula Deen- My Hero

Here is a short biography on Paula Deen from About.com


Ms. Deen is a southern restauranteur and cooking show host. She is flamboyant, gorgeous, rich and all together lovely. She is also a perfect example of one who bloomed lately. She overcame debilitating illness, divorce, single parenthood and potential poverty- all after 40 years old. As I like to say, sometimes it takes a minute for everything to click and fall into place in life. I believe that many of us who bloom at or near mid-life tend to shine brightest. We know what we want and don't have time to waste on distractions. Ms. Deen focused on a couple of things- feeding her boys and cooking. Having lived a little life first helped, I'm certain, in doing that.

Additionally, I like to focus on successful people who changed paths mid-life for reason a reason other than the obvious. These folks, these famous, popular and influential folks were once exactly where I am now. At some point Paula Deen was sitting on her bed saying to herself, "Things can't go on like this. I don't know what to do next but I have to do something differently.". Then, by hook or crook, bam!, she's eventually THE Paula Deen. Her story and that of others reminds me that anything is possible at any time in life.

Death doesn't begin at forty

I just realized that I had been looking at this thing all wrong. In my feeble little mind I kept thing, " I'm just 50 years from death, I'm just 45 years from death, I'm just 40 years from death . . .(much like that scary story kids tell each other about the killer coming to get you on the stairs step by step). Even though I heard the words that "life begins at forty" and I thought I comprehended it, apparently I didn't. My mind said, "oh yeah, old age begins at forty so I might as well get my denture cream and start enjoying those AARP discounts now." I saw it as something the elderly tell themselves to feel better. But not so.

Things can really get cooking for a person right about that time. You've gotten your major mistakes out of the way, including that "starter marriage" ( or starter house, meh, whichever). If nothing else, you know exactly what you don't want. You've likely accumulated some "stuff" so that's one less tchotchke purchase you have to add to your budget. Many of us have gotten the baby diapering out of the way. Those of us who haven't yet should have, at least, gotten the self- centeredness out of the way long enough to deal properly with said diapering. If we haven't accumulated any money at least now we have a working idea of how to do so. The benefits of living in a first world society ( I will reference that often because it is an integral part of being able to bloom lately) are almost innumerable for the go-getting middle-ager. I plan to take advantage.