I'm not invalidating what happened to single older women in the past. Being targeted as witches or being thought useless and expendable was a reality.

However, all we have is the NOW. Each day, each minute. We can plan for the future, but to project fears for a hypothetical future only stresses us now. That's not mentally, emotionally, or physically healthy.

For example, three or more years ago, projecting future fears into 2020/2021 most certainly didn't include a pandemic.

For all you know, in the future aliens may invade and either fix/force us to fix our issues with our planet or destroy us all. Yes, I'm writing this tongue-in-cheek. More realistically, you could have a heart attack or some other illness and die in the next couple of years, never living to see whatever the future will be. But my point is, fearing for the future is futile.

That doesn't mean there aren't a lot of things in our world right now to fear. There IS. But most of them you are powerless over. Therefore, focusing on what you can do NOW and taking small (or big) steps to stay safe and healthy and protected in the future is important.

Some suggestions: Meditate on a regular basis. If you're spiritual, lift up your fears in prayer. Journal about your feelings. Take a self-defense or martial arts class. (When I taught karate, my oldest student started at age 82 and even became a black belt, although it took him longer to get there than the average younger student.) Make sure you are living within your financial means, paying off debt, and socking away money in savings and investments, so you won't be financially vulnerable. Donate to causes and organizations that you believe can help. Practice kindness, tolerance, and be sensible in your day to day interactions and in what you write and post online.

When you start to have fears of your safety in the future, take several deep breaths and say, "Right now, I am SAFE." If necessary, keep repeating the deep breathing and the affirmation.