This is an encyclopedia of thoughts about growing older–both whimsical and serious–followed by poems that ponder how to age with grace. The book was begun during a week-long “writing marathon” with fellow writers in the French Quarter of New Orleans, where things grow ever more vivid as they grow older–old customs, old words (like “lagniappe”), old ways of understanding the river of change. This book contributes to my mission as Oregon’s poet laureate: to serve readers with diverse perspectives through the lens of poetry and lyric prose.