ABSTRACT
Engaging in a practice might sound like indulging the well-known penchant of older people for what is familiar or rote, and it does trade on that sensibility. But it goes a step beyond, as an intentional and potentially satisfying way to maintain some control of one's life. In the relatively unscripted, unscheduled days of old age, one's practice serves as a buffer against waking up and having little or no sense of what to do next. Some people find that it is enough to sustain them, along with the ordinary business of maintenance. But many others want something more dynamic and goal-oriented: a project. The project can be stimulating or merely engrossing. And while the individual supply of energy (and wallet) may put some limits on his/her ambitions, he/she is protected in any endeavor by a no-fault clause. The old-age person has the privilege to pursue a project of enduring significance, a legacy.
