Tag: age

Do you have the time?

01/08/2018 / Laura

Time is so precious. We understand this so much more as we age. I think when most of us were much younger, we saw the future as a very long road stretching out before us to infinity, with no end or at least one that wasn’t anywhere in sight. We “had” time to play, to make and lose friends, to eat what we wanted, maybe drink too much, not exercise enough, and whatever struck our fancy because, after all, we “had” time.

Then a few years went by.

We saw a few strange marks on our faces (“are those wrinkles? Can’t be.”) We couldn’t stay up quite as late, but we sure tried. We noticed how some friends seemed to drift away, yet we didn’t work too hard to get back in touch. After all, we were now working hard on getting things right: our marriages, our careers, our portfolios. The other things, like peace of mind or emotional health? Oh, there’d be plenty of time to worry about that later.

And since we were never really going to grow old, it didn’t matter anyway.

Then a lot more years went by, and very quickly. Much too quickly.

Yet now we are more content with who and what we are because we recognize—this is who we are. Spending a few hours with a good friend is priceless. Reading a really engrossing novel is fulfilling. Watching a grandchild or great niece or nephew giggle is a joy, because we know how quickly they will grow up. Watching a spectacular sunset fills us with awe and isn’t something we take for granted. We are still on our path, but we recognize we’re closer to the end…at least on this planet.

We see how fast time goes by now.

Or did it always?

It’s bittersweet. And depending upon your beliefs, it could just be the beginning, with another path awaiting our spirits that won’t be revealed until we leave our achy joints and bad feet behind. But regardless of where your heart lies, it’s good to just be where you are, in every moment. And if it’s not a good place, then give yourself permission to make it so.

Because a moment is just that—and it’s gone so fast. As boomers and beyond, we know how to make the of them. 2018 is a great time to start.

“Time is the wisest counselor of all.”

Pericles

Acting your age?

05/23/2016 / Laura

Do you laugh out loud as much as possible?

Do you ever dance with the broom to your favorite song?

Do you pause to admire a cherry 57 Chevy when it rolls by?

Do you occasionally wander into the children’s book section just to revisit old friends who used to take you on adventures?

Do you ever watch Bugs Bunny alone and roar with laughter?

Do you sometimes reach down to feel soft, green grass, and remember what it was like to lay there for hours as a child?

Do you like to try new things, like hang gliding or zip lining?

Do you choose the most colorful hat in the store just because?

Do you buy peanuts at baseball games?

Do you eat ice cream cones at the beach?

Do you still gasp at great fireworks?

Do you put your toes in wet sand and wait for the tide to wash over them?

Do you sign up for classes just to learn something new?

Do you play golf with your pals and giggle when one of you misses the ball?

Do you ever roll down the windows and turn the music way, way up?

Do you still order fries?

Do you love how a swimming pool feels on a hot summer’s day?

Do you take a nap when you feel like it?

Do you kayak, hike, fish, bike, paddle board, roller blade, or anything else just to get outdoors on a beautiful day?

Do you still enjoy flirting?

Do you smuggle candy into a movie theater?

Do you ever draw, paint, or write just for fun?

Do you try to really enjoy every moment of your life?

What age are we? Whatever we feel at the moment.

(Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.)

Rock that wrinkle!

“We turn not older with years, but newer every day.”

Emily Dickinson

Let them have their victory.

08/17/2015 / Laura

They say with age, comes wisdom. I believe that’s’ true. But at times, I want to know exactly what kind of wisdom is it that I’m getting more of each year.

Surely it’s more than realizing I can’t remember what I just wrote down on that slip of paper anymore, much less find the paper. Or that jumping off any surface higher than 6 inches is really not a good idea.

Is it wisdom about not being concerned about what everyone thinks about everything I do? That’s a good thing. Or wisdom that tells me what is really important in life, and what is really not? That helps with not wasting my time on superfluous stuff.

But what about the idea that as you grow wiser, you are expected to be kinder, more forgiving, more championing of the successes of others in your boomer & beyond community…even when it really is hard to do?

Stand by and cheer them on. Be glad for their success. Smile and clap at the right moments. It all sounds so Wayne Dyer-esque. It’s good for us. We know this.

But….

When you hear of someone who just suddenly, basically on a whim, accomplishes something you’ve worked your whole life to do, it’s hard. Even if what this person has done isn’t on the scale that you deem acceptable or have set out to do. They took the “easy” road.

You’re still trying to choose the right entrance ramp.

It’s one thing to be glad for them. It’s another to listen to all the accolades others bestow upon this person and not feel your blood boil.

Oh my. Not sounding much like Mother Teresa, are we?

I don’t like having these feelings. I tell myself I’m not jealous, because I don’t think I am. I guess it’s just that feeling of wanting my efforts recognized somehow, or maybe it’s that after a lifetime of working towards something, I don’t want to look up and see that some other person got there first because they bought the app.

Of course it shouldn’t matter. Even Jesus told a parable about the workers in the fields. So it’s clearly none of my business. And maybe I need to wise up and take a few shortcuts myself.

But I can’t bring myself to do that. There’s just certain areas of life I hold sacred, and while I expect younger generations (cue the sound of dentures falling out) to take the shorter route to everything (they deserve the find their own and better way)…I get upset when fellow boomers and beyond do it.

Go figure. I still expect us all to play fair and be nice to one another. Which of course means I need to do that as well. Without worrying that someone else just figured out how to get there first.

I’m working on it.

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”

Albert Schweitzer