Seasons Of Change

David Hartman hosts this provocative series from the Annenberg/CPB Project which examines the psychology of life's stages, from infancy through old age. We sampled the fourth title in the series "Middle Adulthood." Hartman begins by saying that as we reach our early 40s, we get a message from the biological clock saying, in essence, whoa pardner. The body, longtime friend and companion, suddenly greets us with betrayals, and we face up to the fact that we have perhaps less mornings to wake up than we've already had to date. Combining interviews with people in "middle adulthood" and commentary from noted psychologists and health specialists, viewers get a good grounding in what it means to be 40-50 yrs. old today in America. Of particular interest is the plight of women in their 40s. Caught in the "historical crossfire," many of these women have led an almost schizophrenic life--reared according to the "baby boomer" ethics of the 50s, where marriage and children were considered life's overall purpose, they came to adulthood during the turbulent times of the women's movement during the late '60s and early '70s. For Cathy Wilkins, born one second after midnight on January 1, 1946 (officially the first baby boomer) it has meant a separation from her husband, and a return to college where she's a student on the same campus as her daughter. On another campus, Daniel Cheever has found his American Dream come true--appointed to be President of Wheelock College at the age of 45. While for Matt Nort, the American Dream has fallen apart; a Pittsburgh steelworker, Matt was laid off, and now must find part-time work while he and his family struggle to meet the bills. Some are happy stories, others are not so happy; all are interesting and insightful about the way we are in middle adulthood at this point in American history. Highly recommended. (See RACE TO SAVE THE PLANET for availability.)