While some try every method in the book to slow the process of aging, others embrace white hairs and wrinkles with open arms and view it as a blessing to be able to live for so many years.
Regardless, with age comes experience, and Sky Bergman, a Cal Poly professor emeritus of photography and video, is doing her best to highlight the life lessons, advice, and stories that those who are older than her can pass down.
“I worked on a film where I interviewed 40 people that were over 75 and older with a collective life experience of 3,000 years, and ever since I’ve had people asking me when I’m going to write a book about my experience of making the film and the lessons I learned along the way,” she said.
Bergman took everyone’s advice and published her book Lives Well Lived – Generations: Resilience, Positivity, and Purpose at Every Age, which can be purchased on Amazon at amazon.com/dp/0970299117 and dives into her exploration of the world and how she manages to connect the stories of our elders to our youth.
“I’m a real advocate for connecting generations in this age-segregated world,” she said. “I feel like we’re really suffering as a result of that, and in the second half of the book, I talk about the project that I’ve worked on.”
In Lives Well Lived – Generations: Resilience, Positivity, and Purpose at Every Age, Bergman said she talked to 40 older people about everything from climate change and voting rights to generational housing in an attempt to bring generations together.
As age segregation becomes more and more common in today’s world, Bergman said people can’t even recognize it anymore.
“From institutionalized age segregation, like in schools and age-segregated housing, when we have to check a box as to what age we are, and one of the boxes a lot of times is 50 plus or 65 plus and that is a huge range that ends up for older adults being lumped in one category,” she said. “I think we are so separated by age in so many ways and if you think about it, how many friends do you have outside of your own age group?”
Not only is connecting to those in different generations a great way to learn about family history and get a better understanding of who you are, Bergman said it’s also great to be able to hear first-hand accounts from those who lived through the events that might be taught in school.
“About 75 percent of the people in that film were on the Central Coast and then I had this fellowship to do some intergenerational work through this group and I met all these amazing people from around the globe, and that’s in the second half of the book,” she said.
Bergman said she will be selling and signing her book at SLO Provisions as part of July’s Art After Dark and would love to answer questions and meet with community members interested in learning more.
Paula DeLay will also be with Bergman exhibiting artwork from 5 to 8 p.m. on July 5.
“I might be outside because it gets pretty loud and pretty stuffy, so I will probably be right out in the front entryway and set up there,” Bergman said. “I think it should be a really fun night and Paula DeLay is a good friend of mine, and her paintings are beautiful.”
Fast facts
• Those interested in helping to make their local forest and oak woodlands healthy during this upcoming wildfire season are encouraged to participate in a Forest Stewardship Workshop hosted by the UC Cooperative Extension from Aug. 27 through Oct. 22. Community members will learn how to develop a management plan, oak woodland management, forest ecology and vegetation management, and financial planning and cost-sharing opportunities. For more information, visit ucanr.edu/sites/forestry/stewardship. Δ
Reach Staff Writer Samantha Herrera at sherrera@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Jul 4-14, 2024.