“We slide into aging,” she says. “We don’t just jump in.”

That’s the literal and figurative conclusion of an extremely active senior who found herself suddenly in a boot after breaking her ankle when several canines accidentally bumped into her at a dog park.

And adjusting to quick or slow transitions is a key aspect of octogenarian Marie Liddle’s “success” at handling change.

Change can happen fast and this is just one example of how quickly change can happen in our lives and it seems that seniors are more likely to experience profound transitions than any other population.

Widowhood, which also happened recently to Liddle, would leave anyone limping on the inside.

And as a former coloratura soprano opera singer, she had to deal with another sudden heartbreaking change as a result of a thyroid operation.

She makes more than the best of it by hitting the notes she can and appreciating the parts reserved for her in certain songs that she sings with the Friendship Singers, a group of gifted vocalists and entertainers.

As the group’s leader and director, Liddle brings the trait of adjustment to this great group of joy-givers.

She can speak with great authority on handling the large and smaller curves of life - the topic on this edition of The Age Sage.