The Loss of a Dear Friend

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Added: Tue. Jan 22, 2008 9:47am
Posted in: Friendships

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For the first time in 109 years, 9 months and 5 days, Ruth 1898 is not on this earth. The oldest blogger in the world quietly slipped away. Her mind was crisp and clear to the very end.

It’s not often you can say a 109 year old left this earth too soon, it’s true with Ruth. She was sharp, quick-witted and simply charming. Things changed overnight. She awoke with a bad headache. She hurt to the touch. She didn’t want to get out of bed. This went on for nearly two weeks. It was very different from her usual routine.

Most mornings she was early to rise. She loved to gaze out her bedroom window, watch the sun come up and trace the clouds that would float across the skies of a new day. To Ruth, each day was a wonder to behold. Her curiosity would shine as bright as the morning sky.

Ruth believed her sense of wonder kept her alive. She had always thrived on learning. Not so much so she could know, but so she could teach. Teaching was her purpose in life. And she’d been at it for a very long time.

She first became a teacher in 1916 in a country schoolhouse in Iowa. As technology evolved, so did Ruth! When radio became popular, she found a way to use it to teach. Ruth was one of the first women to host her own show in New York, on which she taught speech, elocution and English.

She moved to Los Angeles in the late ‘30’s where she taught diction to Hollywood starlets. She even taught in the political arena, becoming the first woman elected to the legislature in New Hampshire. She taught through the newspaper, writing articles, travelogues and letters to the editor. She even used her own life as an example, writing a no-holds barred 500-page autobiography, “The Hamilton Saga”. And finally, she taught over the internet.

The years flew by. She was in her mid 90’s when this fiercely independent woman decided it would be best to move into an assisted living facility. She sadly believed her days of teaching had come to an end. This woman who routinely traveled the world now seldom left her building. The walls closed in on her. She had no purpose, no voice, no passion. I saw this happen to Ruth and it was painful to watch. Until something amazing happened.

Marc Middleton and I started work on GrowingBolder.com, a web site dedicated to shining a light on the biggest change in the history of mankind, the age revolution. Life doesn’t start a downward slide at 50 anymore. Our site celebrates the new reality, the new possibilities and the new potential. It struck me that Ruth would be a great role model! I knew she would love the life-affirming, motivating content we created. Did she ever! Almost instantly, her spark for life reignited. The computer was her stage. The whole world could be her audience. She got right to it. She filed dozens of video blogs at GrowingBolder.com. The internet had given her voice back. And what a wonderful voice! A woman born in 1898 was now an internet pioneer. She was, in fact, the oldest blogger in the world. She even started getting fan mail from users who sought out her advice. Oh, did she love that!

Blogging made her relevant again. She had so much to offer, so much guidance, inspiration, knowledge and experience to share. I believe it made Ruth happier than she had been in years. But no one lives forever. Ruth filed her final video blogs for us just two weeks before her death. She was very pleased with them. But now that she’s gone, what should we do?

Her final wish was that you would continue to watch her blogs, enjoy, find inspiration and learn from them. What a wonderful gift they are from a woman born of another time, who wanted most of all to help make a difference. Through them, her wit, wisdom and curiosity will live on even longer than her 109 years on earth. So, here at Growing Bolder, we’ve pledged to make Ruth’s final classroom the biggest and most influential yet! We hope you’ll laugh, learn and love life just as much as she did. She would’ve loved that! Yes, Ruth 1898’s class is still in session!