As a peaceful warrior, I would choose when, where and how I would behave.
With that commitment, I began to live the life of a warrior.
~Dan Millman

Monday, April 20, 2009

Monday Musings! Perfect OM to begin the week. Appreciate! Accept! Enjoy!

Appreciating What Is
Enjoying Your Age

In each stage of life, there are wonderful experiences one can savor and valuable insights one can absorb. Every new decade and, in fact, every new year brings with it wisdom, transformation, and growth, as well as ends and beginnings. Many people, however, believe that there is one age that eclipses the others. They expend energy trying to reach it and, once it has passed, trying to retain it. But wishing to be younger or older is a denial of the joys that have been and the joys yet to be, as well as the beauty of your life in the present. Holding on to one age can make it difficult to appreciate each new milestone you reach. Taking pleasure in the delights of your age, whether you are in your 20s, 40s, 60s, or 80s, can help you see the magnificence and usefulness of the complex seasons of your life.

Each new year gifted to us by the universe is replete with exciting and unfamiliar experiences. In our 20s, we can embrace the energy of youth and the learning process, knowing it’s okay to not have all the answers. As we move through our third decade, we grow more self-assured as the confusion of our young adulthood melts away. We can honor these years by putting aside our fears of aging and concentrating instead on solidifying our values and enjoying our growing emotional maturity. In our 40s, we become conscious of the wisdom we have attained through life experience and are blessed with the ability to put it to good use. We are not afraid to explore unfamiliar territory or to change. In our 50s, we tend to have successfully navigated our midlife reevaluations and have prioritized our lives. In the decades beyond, we discover a greater sense of freedom than we have ever known and can truly enjoy the memory of all we’ve seen and done.

Try to enjoy the age you are at now, for each age presents its own unique wisdom to savor.

2 comments:

JeffO said...

Some people don't have anything pleasant to look back on. It becomes easier to accept the here and now.

But you're right - we should be enjoying "now". So many waste their lives trying to live yesteryear again, running from fear, waiting for some outside entity to tell them how to live and what to believe.
Instead, we should try to be the most we can be, and smell the roses each day.

Unknown said...

i lived by a simple motto a few years ago when i first moved to so cal...no excuses. it was a great way for me to put myself out and kind of forced me to 'be here now' in any aspect of life...might have to dust that one off. thanks jeff! ~j