"Fabulous after Fifty™" is the Syndicated On-Line Weekly Column by Shirley W. Mitchell, a National Author/Writer/Syndicated Columnist/Speaker and Celebrity Radio Talk Show Host, also known as "The Golden Egg of Aging™" -  View some of the most inspirational and motivational articles on aging, baby boomers, seniors, senior lifestyles, health, diet, exercise, business, women's and men's issues, specific topic articles, poems, writings, recipes, area news, and special people. Shirley W. Mitchell's "Passion" for encouraging Aging people is both Contagious and Intense! We have the Ability to Change Aging History with our "Pulse" & "Faith". To Teach. To Educate. To Transform. If you enjoy the Articles posted here, you will certainly enjoy my Column Articles within  "Senior Lifestyle Magazine". "Fabulous after Fifty™" is fashioned after her "Lace Over Steel™" and "Fabulous after Fifty™" Weekly Newspaper Columns that appeared in the Sand Mountain Reporter of Albertville, Alabama. We want to thank the newspaper and all our readers for their support over the past 25+ years Ms. Mitchell's Column was printed. We inspire to bring more Style and Enthusiasm to it in the future.

Feb. 19, 1991

Feb. 19, 1991 - Keeping Life On Track By Looking Up © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "O Lord, in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and will look up." Psalms 5:3 KJV One "Lace over Steel" mother, who reads my column, has a nineteen-year-old son on the front lines in the Persian Gulf. She said, "when pain squeezes my heart, I look up to Jesus. I lean on Him who suffered the Itimate pain. Then I have peace." Another "Lace over Steel" grandmother was walking down the street holding the hand of her granddaughter. She said to her, in life, always look up and ahead; don't look down and back. My readers might like to latch onto the golden nuggets of truth these two "Lace over Steel" ladies have expressed. Look up to Jesus! Lift up your body, soul and spirit to God. Look ahead with anticipation! Make today and tomorrow great. Forget the past. It's over. The opposite side of the coin of looking up and ahead, is looking down and back. This attitude brings gloom, uncertainly, darkness, shadow and confusion. The journey of life can be compared to an airplane flight. When flying to California recently the visibility was zero. However, I felt confident, because the pilot was depending upon his instruments radar and the control tower to direct him. He was not depending upon his human eyes and knowledge entirely. As I fly through life many times my life has zero visibility. At times there are sudden turns, uncharted paths ahead and uncertainties. When I get fogged in by life and can't see my way, I depend upon my instrument panel for life - 1. faith in God the Father, God the son and God the Holy Spirit (the control tower); 2. prayer (talking to God, listening and reading His word); 3. love - love is divine! Just like an airplane, life can be kept on track. Look up! Fly high!

Mar. 19, 1991

Mar. 19, 1991 - Four Principles To Change Your Life © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go." Joshua 1:7 New International Version Charlton Heston was the main speaker at a recent meeting I attended in California. He admitted that playing the part of Moses in the movie, "The Ten Commandments," changed his life. Heston studied and researched the life of Moses extensively before starting the movie. He tried to think of himself as Moses. I would like to share with my readers four principles practiced by Moses that changed the actor's life. 1. The Pursuit of Excellence-strive for superiority. Mediocrity was never a part of Moses's character. 2. Be Extraordinary - going far beyond the ordinary to the remarkable. Moses was a magnificent leader and orator! 3. Never Give Up - If you study the life of Moses, you will find he had many occasions that the easy way out would have been to give up. Moses never gave up! 4. Moses stood for freedom! - He said in Leviticus 25:10, "...and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof..." The great orator himself, Charlton Heston, ended his Speech with a booming challenge, "America is the shining door to freedom for all mankind." The successful "Lace over Steel" woman of the 1990's would enhance her life by taking these four principles given by Charlton Heston and take them for her own.

Apr. 9, 1991

Apr. 9, 1991 - Three Words That Can Change Your Life © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was and which is to come, the almighty." Revelation 1: 8 KJV God is omnipotent! The word omnipotent means God has unlimited power, and all authority in the universe. This gives the "Lace over Steel" woman hope when she understands the faintest flicker of faith he understands and will respond. The woman who believes in the Omnipotent God will not limit Him and will trust Him with her life. She will not fear, because God is near. Without Him, today's woman can do nothing, but with Him she knows all things are possible. God, our omnipotent Father, made you and me. He knows what makes us tick. He knows more about us that we know about ourselves. He has a special plan for each life. His Holy Word is our road map for life. The omnipotent God can make something beautiful of your life. He is all-powerful. God is omnipresent! "Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord. Jeremiah 23: 24 KJV God is in all places at the same time. He fills the universe with His presence! I like the words of this song, "He is big enough to rule the universe, but small enough to live in my heart." His omnipresence gives believers security in war and peace as we walk this road of life. God is omniscient! "Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite," Psalms 147:5 KJV God has all knowledge!  He knows all about you and your future. He even knows how many hairs are on your head. (Luke 12:7) It is safe to commit your life to a God of all knowledge. The Lifetime television show "The Great American TV Poll' recently surveyed 600 adults about what was the most import taut thing in their lives. Forty percent indicated faith in God. To be the electric women of the 1990's plug your life into the power of God Almighty who has all power, all knowledge and is present everywhere at all times.

Apr. 16, 1991

Apr. 16, 1991 - Describing The Beauty Of The Lace Over Steel Woman © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us; and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hand establish thou it." Psalms 91:17 Watching the beautiful, multicolored monarch butterfly flit from one flower to the other, my spirit became weightless. The soundless and unhurried movements of God's gorgeous creation gave the garden a sense of relaxation and timelessness. The dappled sunlight danced on the fragile wings of my inspiration. My thoughts are caught up in how this beautiful butterfly compared with the beauty of being God's woman. The butterfly is one of the most beautiful of all insects and helps pollinate flowers to bring new life. Take your cue from God's gorgeous creature, the butterfly, and let God's beauty rest upon you. Thank heavens beauty is not only skin deep. To the woman who makes a difference in her world we add zest, intelligence, wit, curiosity, sweetness, passion, talent and grace. Like the blooming of the beautiful tulips, azaleas and dogwoods bloom into your full potential and be a winner. Like the multicolored monarch butterfly soar with confidence to your unlimite potential. Hey! You can do it! Yes you can! "Beauty is the mark God set on virtue. Every natural action is graceful; every heroic act is also decent, and causes the place and the bystanders to shine." Ralph Waldo Emerson

Jul. 2, 1991

Jul. 2, 1991 - Time To Celebrate America's Freedom © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "...And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." Ga. 2:4 KJV Horace Greeley once said, "It is impossible to enslave, mentally or socially, a Bible reading people. The principles of the Bible are the groundwork of human freedom." After the American Bible Society sent 300,000 special desert-camouflage covered Bibles to the U.S. military forces in the Gulf War, Army Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf said, "The enthusiasm generated by the Bibles is proof that today's young men and women are as hungry for spiritual nourishment as were those of any previous generation." The people of the United States care deeply about their country, and the country rewards its people with freedom. The late President Dwight David Elsenhower said, "All our freedoms are a single bundle, all must be secure if any is to be preserved." After traveling to Russia in 1989, this columnist received a new glimpse of just how precious freedom is to American people. Folks, WE LIVE IN A PARADISE! My personal patriotism has always run high. Since the "100 Day War," more of my fellow Americans are joining me in my embrace of this great country. Let each of us keep the Spirit of the Lord in our hearts, so liberty and human freedom will always be ours.

Jul. 16,1991

Jul. 16,1991 - Turn To God In Time Of Trouble © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "So David and his men came to the city, and behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. "Then David and the people tha t were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep." I Samuel 30: 3, 4 KJV Have you ever wept until you had no more power to weep? When David returned to his home, he found the place burned and his family taken captive. The Bible says, "Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep." First Samuel 30:6, tells us that David was greatly distressed. What did David do when he was greatly distressed? He wept until he could not weep anymore; then, he encouraged himself in the Lord his God. Crying is a good cleansing process, but once we have no more power to weep, we must flip from a negative attitude to a positive thought pattern. David had an intimate relationship with his Lord. That relationship helped him in time of trouble. David knew the Lord's voice when he answered his prayer, (...and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.) St. John lO:3 KJV. God encouraged David when he answered David's inquiries! God said, "pursue for thou shalt surely overtake them and without fail recover all." David took action! He pursued the Amalekites who had burned his home and taken his family. The Bible tells us that David recovered all that the' Amalekites had carried away and David rescued his family. We can learn a lesson from David when we are wrestling with the storms of life. 1. He wept. 2. He encouraged himself in his Lord. 3. He asked God what to do. 4. He listened as God spoke. 5. He obeyed God! 6. He recovered all he had lost. Remember nothing is impossible with God!

Sept. 3, 1991

Sept. 3, 1991- Ten Ways To Experience A More Fulfilled Life © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in they presence is fulness vf Joy; at the right hand there are pleasures for evermore." Psalms 16:11 KJV My family showed in competition Tennessee Walking Horses at the "National Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration" in Shelbyville, Tenn. last week. As we enjoyed the competition, the beauty and joy of riding the horses, the camaraderie with our friends who love horses from across this great nation; the pageantry of the horse shows and the beauty of the organ music, my thoughts turned to "celebrating life!" "Today is yours; so celebrate life!" Each day as we fill each moment with enriching experiences we add new meaning and depth to our lives. I'd like to give you 10 ways to enrich your life. 1. Know God. Take time to spend with Him meditating in His word. Draw close to Him in prayer. Worship Him in spirit and truth. Intimacy with God will add vitality and vision to our life. 2. Take time to love and be oved. Love is positive energy, God is love. 3. Let music fill the recesses of your soul. Your life will become a living song. 4.  Enjoy children. "But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me;  for of such is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 19:14 KJV. Time with a child is a little bit of heaven! 5. Find solitude. Solitude is a rare and treasured time. It helps you keep in touch with yourself and God. 6. Embrace the moment. The moment is all you have; so, fill it with real living. 7. Make relationships stronger and continually create new ones. The interaction of people, personalities and ideas is stimulating. 8. Fill your life with laughter. Laughter is the best medicine for life. 9. Take every opportunity to travel. Traveling expands your mind and soul. 10. Be happy! That is your individual choice.

Sept. 24, 1991

Sept. 24, 1991 - America Is Entering The 'Age Age' © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness." Proverbs 16:31 KJV Congratulations! You are living in the "space age" and the "age, age." Dr. Walter M. Bortz II, M.D. states in his new book, "We Live Too Short And Die Too Long," that the human body is created to last 120 years or one million hours. He predicts by 2050 there will be 50 million Americans over 85 years ol age. The new phrase, down-aging, has been introduced by Faith Popcorn, chairman of a market-forecasting firm called Brain Reserve Inc. She tells us that 40 is now what 30 used to be, 50 is now what 40 used to be and 65 is the beginning of middle age. Beatrice L. Cole wrote an article for "Parade" magazine on the joys of being 90. She emphasized that her 90's are the most exciting and satisfying days of her life. She greets each day as a gift from God to be enjoyed. She gave her readers three roads to a long healthy life: (1) good habits; (2) a well-rounded diet and (3) an optimistic outlook. This generation is absolutely blessed by God to live in the "space age" and the "age, age." We have hopes of living longer, healthier, happier lives than ever before in history. The adage, "over forty-over the hill," no longer has any credibility. Time and tone can go together to create an appealing woman. Like superior wine, God's women mellow and refine with age. Experience brings with it a deeper much more interesting beauty. It's the unique beauty combining the body, mind and spirit. Forget the negative aspects of aging and capitalize on the positive advantages. The sky is not the limit in the "space age" and "age, age." We are shooting for the universe.

Nov. 19, 1991

Nov. 19, 1991 - Enjoy The Busiest Season Of The Year © by Shirley W. Mitchell, Lifestyles - Lace Over Steel™ "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." Psalms 16:11 KJV November and December are the busiest months of the year. Do you feel that your life is in a tailspin burdened with your duties, job, commitments, and extra obligations of the holiday season. Add extra holiday obligations to an already busy schedule and many times the "Lace over Steel" woman becomes frustrated. Don't get into a victim trap of busyness, frazzled nerves and chaos, missing the beauty and joy of the season! November and December do not have to be difficult. It can be smooth and good. There is wisdom in having a quiet time each morning of the busy season. Do not allow distractions and activities to shorten your prayer time. When we involve Jesus Christ in our everyday activities and decisions, then He is our Lord and will direct our paths. We must not "awfulize" the holiday season. We have the power to plan, prioritize, work and enjoy. Listed are some ideas to help you be a creative, productive, and powerful person while enjoying the last part of 1991. 1. Make a master plan for the Thanksgiving and Christmas season. Organize your days on a calendar that is near your person at all times. As you need to add activities or change plans already made, make notations on your calendar immediately. 2. At the beginning of each day, schedule a quiet time. You have a personal relationship with Jesus. Allow Him to help you plan your day. Ask Him for wisdom, guidance and strength. (P.S. Why not ask for love, joy and peace also.) 3. Prioritize! List "things to do" in order of importance. If your time runs out, then you have accomplished the most important and urgent tasks. 4.Seize the moment and enjoy it. We will only have one 1991 "holiday season."

Shirley W. Mitchell is the Owner and Founder of Fabulous after Fifty™ - a Motivational, Inspirational and Educational Company located in Northern Alabama providing products and services related to Organizing and Conducting Educational Conferences, Classes, Symposiums, Seminars, Workshops, Speeches and Training Courses in the fields of Aging, Seniors, Senior Lifestyles, Health, Wellness, Nutrition, Generational Women and Men's Issues, Faith, Passion and Purpose, and Distribution of Materials including Multimedia Audio, Video, CD, DVD, Books, Newsletters, Journals, Magazines, Articles, Periodicals, Electronic Books, and other Written and Audio Publications. Ms. Mitchell and Fabulous after Fifty™ are managed and represented by Lighthouse Coastal Productions 466 Sardis Cutoff Road Sardis City, AL 35956. ***Copyright © and Trademark ™ Notice: 1967-2011 All Works, Venues and Content by Shirley W. Mitchell™ including "The Golden Egg of Aging™", "The Fabulous Author™", "Fabulous after 50®", "Fabulous after Fifty™", "Sensational after 60®", "Sensational after Sixty™", "Aging Outside the Box®", "Passionate Sparks™", "Spiritual Sparks for Busy Women™", "Lace Over Steel™", "Ageless Living™", "Endless Energy™", "Better Half of Life™", "Citrus Park™", "Crosstown Info™", "The Amazing System™" and "Aging with Glamour™"are © Copyright and ® Trademark protected*** No part of this Web-Site or Column may be reproduced without the prior written consent of the Agent. If you would like to purchase copies of the articles, please send an E-Mail to us with your request. If you should encounter any problems with this Web-Site please E-Mail the Webmaster.