Today's message to boomers....

Dr. Bill Thomas believes "boomers" will rely on communities as they age, so they better start building them.

Thomas, a geriatrician (an ungainly word, but think pediatrician, except for old folks), is interviewed in today's Oregonian (Page C1 "Embrace elderhood, doctor tells boomers").

http://www.oregonlive.com/living/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/living/1161377703277300.xml&coll=7

The part about communities comes near the end of the interview. Thomas says that because family members are scattered all over the map, boomers need to build new "families" that are not blood related. Such "families" consist of those "with whom you have close and deep and enduring and meaningful relationships," he says.

And those relationships emerge out of community-building. Thomas continues: "We tend to think of community as just something that's either there or not there. We move into and join it, or not. But we, the boomers, have to learn how to make it. Community is going to be essential to our well-being, our health and our life satisfaction."

Thomas' observations also mirror findings showing that people who are involved with others live healthier lives as they age.

Robert Putnam, in his book "Bowling Alone" says studies conclude that, as he puts it, "social networks help you stay healthy."
Putnam also notes that states with "high social capital" have lower mortality and better public health. (Oregon is ranked among the top 12 states in "social capital")

Writes Putnam: "Countless studies document the link between society and psyche: people who have close friends and confidants, friendly neighbors, and supportive co-workers are less likely to experience sadness, loneliness, low self-esteem, and problems with eating and sleeping"

Campers, it would seem, are, by nature, "happy"—because they are together.