As much as I don’t like to admit it, I am in the group of adults considered to be living in the winter season of life. If you’re unfamiliar with that term, I’ll explain. Someone (I don’t remember who and am too lazy to research it) wrote a book describing the seasons of life. Spring is the time of birth and growth, summer is the time for building career and family, autumn is the time for reaping the benefits of your work (the harvest), and the winter season is a time of rest.
Rest. Many in my age group take that literally. They stop doing everything. And I wonder how they can live like that. I understand we’re all different, but I can’t relate.
I don’t mean they stop living. They continue to do their thing, but they stop growing. They become set in their ways. Their world becomes smaller with each passing day.
I don’t want to be like that until my health causes me to be that way. Life in the winter season doesn’t have to be a “well, I’m done” period of time. It can be so much richer.
I’m a thinker, which is a mixed blessing. Life would be easier if I didn’t think so much. So, because I have that tendency, I have come up with a list of things I believe we never get to old to do.
1. We’re never too old to be kind. When Mom was in the hospital the last few months of her life, the nurses loved her because she was always kind to them. Her tone was sweet even when she was exhausted from throwing up or so weak she could barely move. When they came to do something for her, she always thanked them. In our life group meeting yesterday, Mike said he made a point to greet people at the drive-through and ask how their day was going even if they were not particularly friendly to him. “You never know what they’re going through,” he said.
2. We’re never too old to learn something new. It doesn’t have to be big like taking a class or developing a new skill, although those pursuits would work well. But just using the Duo Lingo app on the phone to “learn” a new language or learn a new card game can help our aging brains stay sharper. Yes, our brains are aging as is every other part of us. Don’t hide from the truth, Baby Boomers and older. Accept it.
3. We’re never too old to say “I’m sorry.” Repairing a broken relationship can do wonders for our mental state, but I think most of us, if we’re honest, can look back on things we did in which we wronged someone or made the wrong decision. Being honest with ourselves and apologizing to others may be the key to giving us the peace we need. And, by the way, it’s okay to apologize to your children. I know our parents never apologized to us for anything, but in this era of open honesty, it may not be a bad idea. It depends, of course, on how receptive our children might be to bringing up old hurts.
4. We’re never too old to get out of our comfort zones. I flew quite a bit in the 1970s and early 1980s but allowed a bad experience to instill fear into me, a fear that was made worse by my mother, whose many fears (a mental illness she didn’t recognize–extreme anxiety) affected her life as well as mine, and I didn’t fly again until a few years ago. After that first flight, I felt so stupid for allowing that fear to have kept me from traveling by air. How much richer my life would have been, and how much richer it is today because I got out of my comfort zone. I’m not saying I love going through security and the cramped seating on planes, but the reward is less travel time and more time spent at the destination. Getting out of your comfort zone may be something more simple like applying for a part-time job, inviting people to your home for a dinner, even changing doctors. I’m not advocating everyone take up air travel. It’s definitely a personal choice!
5. We’re never too old to get stronger. Notice I said “never too old.” No doubt there are health conditions that can impact someone’s ability to build muscle, but I am proof that strength training works. I have been using the weights at the wellness center for over a year, and I continue to increase the weights on the machines as I get stronger. I’d suggest you get someone to advise you and train you how to use the machines so as to avoid injury, but I am stronger than I’ve been in years.
The photo is of me with friends and classmates at one of our reunions. It’s funny how getting together with my high school friends drops the years. That 16-year-old still hiding deep within me comes to the surface, and for a short period of time, we are transported back to those days of fun and angst and drama and hope. We’ve lived the lives we were looking ahead to, and I doubt any of us ended up with the life we envisioned in our high school days.
The experiences we’ve had have shaped us into the people we are, but being this age doesn’t mean we stop growing. No, not in the sense of those in the spring season but maybe more like the winter weather when gray days give way to snowy days which give way to brilliant sunshine and amazingly blue skies. Even winter, when the land is dormant, has change.
I could go on with other ideas like never being too old to learn to be unselfish, never being too old to do good for others, never being too old to be a good listener, never being too old to stop complaining about everything, and more. But I’ll stop with the hope I’ve made my point.
We’re never too old to–you fill in the rest.
Life As I know it 