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Joy was in short supply. I’d received a lot of bad news from several people in my life. It was a litany of loss. And never mind the world news in general, which is almost always hard to hear. I longed for more good cheer, for myself and for my loved ones. So I thought about the concept of joy and promised myself I’d somehow grab a little. By definition, joy stems from emotional, mental and physical wellbeing. At this point in life, most of us have discovered a lot of things t

Estelle Carlson of Redondo Beach, California, has had a smartphone for at least 10 years. Carlson, who is in her 70s, does everything on it: she banks, Facetimes with her cousin in Scotland and her granddaughters in Boston and Kaui, she writes “letters” and texts. “I can’t imagine being without it,” she says of her iPhone. Carlson is not alone. Smartphone use among seniors is growing every year, but it varies substantially by age: 59% of 65- to 69-year-olds have smartphones.

Thinking positive has long been linked with making us healthier, less stressed and better company. Now, a Yale study has gone a step further, finding good news for those 60 plus who have positive beliefs about aging. They are less likely to develop dementia, says Becca Levy, PhD, professor of epidemiology and psychology at the Yale School of Public Health. She is the first author of the study, published Feb. 7 in the journal PLOS One. And, even more surprising, having the pos