From hiking to painting to writing to spending time with pets, we all have things we love to do.  When asked how we want to spend our time when we retire, I think most of us would say that we want to be doing the things we love most and spending time with the people we love most.

However, there seems to be a perception out there that as we age, we stop doing the things we love, and that maybe we even stop loving the things we used to.  While it’s true that our interests and abilities change, we can continue to find joy in the things we’re passionate about—and we can even develop new passions.

This year, Immanuel Lutheran Communities is participating in The Passions Project, a photo series showcasing seniors pursuing their passions.  We’ve selected twenty residents to be photographed, and we’ll use these photos around campus and, we hope, around town.  We want to change the face of aging in the Flathead Valley.

As you learn more about the Passions Project in the coming weeks, I encourage you to think about what you want to be doing in the latter years of your life.  Will you hike more?  Read more books?  Travel the world?  Or maybe, like some the Passions Project featured residents, you’ll discover a new passion!