Eyres on the Road

Today the Eyres pick up the theme of "score" from last week's podcast and compare the first and second half of life in 6 categories: Physical, Mental, Social, Emotional, Spiritual, and Familial. If you were to keep score of how well you are doing in these 6 "facets" of life, would you feel that the first half of life is where they peak and are are at their best, or would it be the second half? For a deeper dive, sign up for free to the course at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

In this episode, the Eyres apply the sports or music term "score" to life and to its phases. They make the point that most of us have stewardship both over family members in their childhood and family members in their seniorhood, and that the two are both overwhelmingly important and should both be given highest priority. This is part of https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/ which you can join for free.

The Eyres talk today about perhaps the most important question we can ask ourselves... and continue to ask ourselves. Richard springs the question to an unsuspecting Linda: If you could give only three answers to the question "Who are you?", what would those answers be? Can we shift in life's second half from a focus on doing to a focus on being, and what roles are most important to play well? For more, visit https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

In this episode, Linda and Richard reminisce about the early stages of their writing and publishing career and the good fortune that landed them with Random House, Simon and Schuster, and McGraw Hill. Then they discuss their goal of making all of their books free online and connecting them as "textbooks" for their new online course at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

Freshly back from Switzerland, the Eyres talk today about an expanded definition of FAMILY, including three generations working together. And they get into their new online course on HOW TO LIVE The Second Half of Life and the benefits it has for parents as well as grandparents. They talk about how the class can be consumed, and invite listeners to join for free at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

The Eyres originate this episode from Switzerland where they are working on their online course https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/ and visiting their author-and-speaker Tal who lives high in the Alps with his wife and daughter. Tal is a guest on the show and the discussion is about what the "second half" is, and how it begins with new priority on relationships and the seeking of inner joy.

This episode includes the results of a survey the Eyres conducted of 500 members of their HOW TO LIVE online course (sign up for free at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/). The top responses on "best part" were grandkids, freedom and flexibility, wisdom and confidence, and more time for relationships. Top "worst parts" were declining mental and physical ability, loneliness, and broken relationships with children.

Richard, with a lot of help from the daughters, managed to surprise Linda for her birthday and they share some of the shenanigans with us on today 's episode. Then the Eyres turn the discussion to their new course HOW TO LIVE the Second Half and invite all podcast listeners to sign up for free at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

"Forgive our prejudice, but we think two new and fast-growing podcasts, one by our daughters and one by our sons, are a must-listen for modern families". So say the Eyres in today's episode, and they explain why! The two podcasts are IN THE ARENA with the Eyre Sisters, and Create Good Stories with Tal Eyre, and both are available wherever you get your podcasts.

Today the Eyres reflect on the mentors they have had during the course of their lives and discuss how "asking for advice" from those we admire can make a difference. In their new online course, Richard and Linda share their belief that as we reach the Autumn Stage of life, we need to "mentor each other". To join the course for free go to https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

The Eyres recently opened the closet where all of their memories lie in the form of journals, scrapbooks, photos, school papers, and all kinds of other memorabilia resides. On today's episode they talk about how relevant and vital the past is to the present and the future and how possible it is to live in all three at once.

In today's episode, Linda and Richard review a webinar they did this week for CEOs and company presidents across the country on HOW TO LIVE The Second Half of Life. It is largely a matter of shifting from an achievement focus to a relationship focus, and you can find further details (and sign up for free) at https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/.

The Eyres have just returned from Palm Springs where they spent a week watching the Indian Wells Tennis tournament, so today they reflect on the week and on the game and on the many parallels between the game of tennis (this applies to pickle ball too) and the game of life. Enjoy a lighter episode of Eyres on the Road.

Today the Eyres come to us from Palm Springs and are talking about what these three 11 letter S-words have in common. Richard and Linda feel that hey are the true alternatives to the false paradigms of Control, Ownership, and Independence. They discuss the book "The Happiness Paradox" and apply the three alternatives to real life situations.

In this episode, the Eyres explore questions about movies (on the even of the Academy Awards) and discuss the role entertainment play in our families. They also mention their new online course https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/ and talk about three generation connections in the modern world.

Unofficially, the full name of this podcast, now in its 16th year, is Eyres on the Road with the subtitle HOW TO LIVE The Second Half of Life. The Eyres, and most of their listeners are in that second half, that Autumn, (or if not, their parents are) and Richard and Linda are focusing more and more on the How-Tos of Autumn, focusing on relationships and the things that really matter, and how to do them better.

For Valentines Weekend, the Eyres are thinking about love--the love of friends. They discuss long term friendship, sibling friendship, group friendships and more, and they get into a discussion group called Inklings that they have maintained for nearly 60 years. They end with a discussion of beauty, and how we can find more of it in our lives.

Today the Eyres take us on a quick overview of their main website and review it as a "toolbox" for parents, grandparents, and families. This is the website where Joy School, Alexanders Adventures (responsibility stories) and "Eyres Free Books" can be found, along with new material on parent/grandparent teamwork.

In this episode, the Eyres discuss an online course they will be teaching about the changes and the differences between the first and second half of life. The emphasis and priority shifts from achievements to relationships and from doing to being. Then they explore the webpage https://valuesparenting.com/how-to-live/

The word that has been the overall title for the last few episodes (and for the accompanying articles at https://latterdaysaintmag.com/living-a-familycentric-life/) suggests that if we can put our families at the center of our lives and view both our circumstances and our opportunities through a familycentric lens...we will begin to find more meaning and more fulfillment in everything we do. Hear the Eyres conclusion to this series in this episode.

On this episode, the Eyres talk about the incredibly deceptive world we live in today--where AI can make it appear that someone we know and trust said something he never said at all. How do we combat deception, and how do we teach our kids to do so? How do we recognize a wolf in sheep's clothing? Is there a spiritual power we can tap into that discerns truth from error. For more, see https://latterdaysaintmag.com/discernment-in-a-time-of-deception/.

In this episode, the Eyres review a current article they wrote at latterdaysaintmag.com on the factors that influence couples in deciding whether to try to become pregnant and have a child; and then Richard and Linda expand the discussion to what declining fertility means to the economies and cultures of developed countries around the world.

The Eyres dive deep in this episode into the question of declining birth rates and the seeming inability of developed countries around the world to replace their populations and maintain their work forces. The macro societal question of "demographic winter" is also a personal question for many couples who are trying to decide whether or not to have children. Also see cover story this weekend at latterdaysaintmag.com

Richard and Linda talk about a different kind of gifts on this episode--spiritual gifts in the form of new insights and eternal truths that they believe were part of a "Restoration" that occurred to start the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. A God-initiated restoration is very different than a man-originated reformation and the Eyres discuss that difference today. (Corresponds to a current magazine cover, just google "Meridian Magazine")

Linda and Richard are in Phoenix this week and involved in discussions about how all parents worry about Social Media and Screen-Time, but not enough of us know about all the good and family-prioritizing influencers that are out there. How do we find the "good stuff" online, even as we are trying to protect from the bad? Then the Eyres turn to Christmas, and shifting the family focus from Santa to Jesus.

Today the Eyres do a deep dive into the questions of ageing, of relevance, of diversity, and of the enormous and growing (but undervalued and underused) asset of those who are over 70. If you are a senior, how do you stay relevant in your family, in your church, in your community? And if you are younger, how to you honor and tap in to the wisdom? Maybe, as in sports, we call the older divisions "Masters."

On the morning after Thanksgiving, Richard and Linda talk about their day of gratitude with their family and the guest family of refugees from Guatemala who joined them for the holiday. Is gratitude inversely related to how much we have? Why do those with less blessings seem to appreciate them more? Two of the Eyres' grandkids join them for part of the podcast.

In the Eyre family, R&SCF stands for Relationship and Spiritual Creation Facilitation. Richard and Linda have adopted a deliberate goal of getting their grown children away from their normal routine and responsibility for short R&SCF adult trips where communication and goal setting (spiritual creation) is fostered and facilitated. They are on a R&SCF trip at an ancient hacienda in central Mexico where they cast from today.

Richard and Linda Eyre are world traveling family coaches. Their common-sense approach to parenting brings hope and encouragement to parents everywhere. A production of BYUradio.

Richard and Linda Eyre are world traveling family coaches. Their common-sense approach to parenting brings hope and encouragement to parents everywhere. A production of BYUradio.

Casting from Las Vegas today, the Eyres finish a discussion they started last episode about the 3-letter lesson ALM referring to the acts of mercy and compassion that Jesus called alms. An act of service or lifting is called an "almdeed" in the New Testament. They then juxtaposition that word with the 3-letter lesson WIN which is a blessing when we make it a win-win, and a curse when we make it a win-lose.

As the Eyres celebrate Richard's 80th birthday, their minds are on memories, traditions, and the coming holiday season. So instead of getting to their three-letter lesson of ALM, they merely introduce it for next week and spend the podcast talking about how family traditions are the glue that holds families together, and discussing how traditions actually ripen and grow with age.

On today's episode, Richard and Linda cast from Jackson Hole where they have spent the week with all nine of their children celebrating Richard's BIG birthday. As the party breaks up, they sit down with Saren to discuss her work with family and parent coaching and her extensive website PowerofFamilies.com.

On this episode, Linda and Richard, in the midst of gathering with all of their children for Richard's birthday, reflect on how much parenting, particularly mothering, has changed. 30 years ago, when Joy School was at its peak, being a "stay at home mom" was the norm in many places. Was that the best way? Or with technology and working remotely can moms do as much for their kids today but in a very different way?

(Re-run from 12/11/2021) The Eyre's are in New York City today, and start the show with some of the reasons they love the city and their long history there. Then Richard and Linda start a new mini-series for Eyre's on the Road called Three Letter Lessons--short words that symbolize a principle or attitude or behavior we should adopt. "Eye" is about seeing people spiritually rather than physically--looking at people's eyes and using your own eye as a shutter to take an empathy picture.

On today's episode, Richard and Linda are joined by their son Eli for a discussion of the power and value of friendships. They share a family discussion they recently had about talking to our children about how to be a good friend, and they refer to a YouTube video featuring Trevor Noah and Simon Sinec that you can watch at https://youtu.be/CNBxIhxHHxM.

This week's 3-Letter Lesson is a warning and a caution--about how Taking For Granted (TFG) can undermine our happiness, eliminate our wonder and awe, and sedate us into missing out on all the little and big joys that life offers us. Richard and Linda explore why our minds default so often to a sense of entitlement or of taking things for granted instead of to the antidote of gratitude, awareness, and praise.

After 12 episodes exploring a "new lens" for viewing Church and family, the Eyres get back to their ongoing series on "3-Letter Lessons"--little word-pegs that remind us of perspectives and attitudes we want to embrace. Today the word is AGE, and Richard and Linda advocate that age and its wisdom and perspective should be valued, respected, tapped-into, and even cherished-- much more so than it is in western society today.

(Re-run from 10/30/2020) Lincoln said "Sometimes I am driven to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I have no place else to go." As parents, we often feel this same feeling. Parenting is hard, children are complicated, the world is dangerous and confusing, particularly in this pandemic--and we are driven to our knees because we have nowhere else to go. And this can be a GOOD THING, because an earthly parent praying to a Heavenly Parent about a child that they share can create some of the most fervent, effectual prayers ever uttered. And it can generate answers that we would never find anywhere else. On today's show, the Eyres talk about parental prayer and how we can all make it a more important part of our lives.

The Eyres are in New York City for the US Open Tennis tournament (and a little Broadway) and use the first part of this episode to think about their 60-year love affair with the City. They then move on to discuss the final installment of the 12-essay series on Familycentricity which focuses on Christ and how He is both the End, the Means, and the Joy of our lives. To see the full article go to latterdaysaintsmag.com.

In today's episode, Richard and Linda "go deep" attempting to discuss their belief in a two-way eternity and how and why they favor a faith that embraces eternal progression rather than eternal rest. They begin the discussion with the question they are frequently asked "What is different in your LDS beliefs as compared to traditional Christianity?" For a full essay on the topic, go to latterdaysaintmag.com.

In this episode, Linda and Richard tell a story about a beloved leader who taught them, by example, to always put people first. They then share a method for setting "Relationship Goals" and conclude with a metaphor about "staying on the porch after you storm out and slam the door."