You're Only Young Twice: 10 Do-Overs to Reawaken Your Spirit

Ronda Beaman
Vanderwyk & Burnham (2006)
ISBN 188924225X
Reviewed by Lynn O'Connell for Reader Views (2/07)

“You’re Only Young Twice” is a nice combination of quick and easy to-do’s designed to help the reader “become young twice,” as well as an in-depth explanation of the science of growing young. In Part One of the book, author Ronda Beaman begins by describing neoteny (the science of growing young) from a scientific viewpoint. She includes a couple of self-tests in this section: one is a true/false quiz designed to test the reader’s knowledge of aging and the other is an inventory the reader may use to determine his or her “age,” ranging from exceptionally youthful to aged. Beaman also encourages readers to start a “Young Twice Chronicle” in which they write down their thoughts and activities as they read the book. A special symbol appears throughout the book whenever the author suggests readers write in their chronicles.

Beaman creatively uses acronyms to get her points across. For example, the AGE Model includes three steps for the reader to become young again: Act, Grow, Evolve. Characteristics of youth are delineated in the term, OLD: your Outlook on life, the Language of your life, and your Drive.

In Part Two, Beaman details each of ten traits that she finds contribute to youthful living. These traits are: resilience, optimism, wonder, curiosity, joy, humor, song and dance, work, play, and learning. Ultimately, in the last chapter, she notes that love must always be a trait of living at any age.

Some do-overs were quite obvious such as the suggestion to go back to school in the section on learning. However, others I found unique and refreshing. For example, she suggests “going back to the eighties” – i.e., do what you were doing twenty years ago and you will feel more youthful. She asks: What music did you like? What books were you reading? What were your favorite foods? Can you display art or souvenirs from that time period? Can you make contact with a friend from that time? Another do-over that I particularly liked was the joy jar – a jar filled with slips of paper directing you to “smile at someone you don’t know today,” “stargaze while drinking hot chocolate,” etc.

Humor seemed to be one of the ten traits that Beaman particularly emphasizes. She included a “Last Laugh Survey” for readers to use to measure their sense of humor. For the do-over, she suggests starting a monthly comedy club.

I particularly enjoyed the quotes which begin each section and are sprinkled throughout the book. Two of my favorites were:

“It takes one a long time to become young.” –Picasso
“The voyage of discovery lies not in seeking new horizons, but in having new eyes.” –Proust

Beaman has been a teaching and a life coach for years, and this comes across clearly in her book, as she provides easy-to-understand explanations, stories and examples, and gentle encouragement to readers. Her writing made me chuckle – and keep reading. One example: “It’s been pointed out that the purpose of a baseball game is not to play as many innings as possible. The purpose of a symphony, too, is not to postpone the final note. And what of the purpose of life? It’s not about growing old; it’s about coming of age.”

Before I started reading the book, I believed it was designed for retirees. That’s not true! I would recommend it for individuals in their 30s and 40s who have an interest in keeping their spirits alive, ever-changing and interesting.

For anyone open to trying or exploring a new attitude toward life, “You’re Only Young Twice” will give each reader some great ideas and food for thought. The book flows well, making it easy to read and the quizzes and do-overs are easy to find and to put into practice.

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