At 61 I now enjoy getting older. I’m learning to embrace my maturing years. Here are 4 realizations about aging which will make you happy about getting older.
As you age, realize you have a collection of failures to teach you how to make the rest of your life the best of your life.
Failure is a wonderful teacher. Never waste a single failure. Use them to learn valuable life lessons. Those times of failing are golden opportunities to reflect and do better.
With each passing year my failure collection grows. Maybe this is true for you. Force yourself to examine your failures and turn them into life lessons. At this point in the journey, if you are like me, you have a lot of material to learn form.
As you age, you realize the journey will not last forever and allow that knowledge to inspire you to live a fuller life.
I remember the day I turned 13. On that exact date, December 3, 1966, I found myself wondering how long I would live. Of this I was certain: I didn’t want to end up as an old cantankerous crab apple. In a moment of sheer youthful stupidity, I decided if I could live to see the year 2000 I would be satisfied. Later, in the fall of 1999, I changed my mind.
I’ve decided I want to live as long as possible. But I also decided I’m going to milk every remaining day. Because of that one decision:
- I’m reading better books.
- I’m taking time to marvel at the sunrise and sunsets.
- I’m trying to improve personal relationships.
- I’m trying to drink more coffee!
Use your remaining time to live life fully.
As you age, you realize you need to dump the baggage of the past.
Think of all the stuff you’ve accumulated in your garage over the years. Often the garage becomes so full of stuff the car sits outside. The clutter added up over the years until it took over.
The same is true of our collective burdens, grudges, hurts, and betrayals. We didn’t mean to accumulate so many that we can barely move forward with our life. It happened a little bit at a time. As the years passed we discovered the weight of all the junk handicaps us from full living.
As you age, realize the need to dump the junk. Let it go. And, just like when you lose 20 pounds, you will discover a new bounce in your step.
You can thank maturity and the aging process for the wisdom to let it go.
As you age, you realize how fortunate your are to be alive.
Weeks after he turned 18 my younger brother died at the hands of a drunk driver. As I type these words I am stunned to say I’ve lived 43 years longer than he did. 43 years! And I’m still here.
The older you get the more you appreciate the miracle of your own life. Face it: how many from your high school or college are already gone? We all could generate a list of people who haven’t made it.
Mourn the death of those who are gone. But you are a survivor. Life is precious. Who knows how many years remain for us but embrace today. Do the happy dance!
Join me in embracing the accumulation of years. Growing old is your friend; not the enemy. No one knows how much longer they will live. But you can know this: you have the power to make the rest of the journey the best of the journey.
Are you with me?
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