Does Age Affect How we See Life?
There are many stages in Life ...
Does Age Affect How we See Life?
In a round about way I suppose it does. I know I’ve always cared about life, but there are different stages and I’ve seen each through different eyes and a heart that felt differently, too.
When you’re a child, you enjoy every day as it comes just as it is. You don’t think about the day in any sort of terms, or wonder whether there will be another day after the one you woke up to that morning. You just assume life will go on and on and you’ll have an endless supply of days and adventures.
When we’re young adults, we care about life, too. We just don’t have a lot of spare time to stop and reflect on the subject. At that age, most are busy with raising families, working, setting money aside for the children’s education, and planning ahead for retirement.
At that age, it’s in the back of the mind that we appreciate being given another day to fill. However, being so busy and a young adult, we still take for granted that more days will follow.
The stage where age figures most into how much we care about life is after we reach 65. We have a whole new appreciation for the days we get to wake up to. At this stage, we also have the time to wonder, how many more days will we be given to fill?
We’ve already become aware of friends and family passing and it naturally puts a special sheen on each day we’re given. Every day becomes precious, because now we’re well aware that somewhere up ahead, looms a finish line.
The finish line has always been there. The difference is, now we have time to stop taking the days for granted and start thinking about —-and wondering, who or what doles the days out to us? Do we have a specific purpose for being here? Do we have a way to contact someone who is in charge?
The Universe doesn't judge us for any choices we made through these life stages. However, we’re learning we’ll never be able to explore the meaning of life, until we've faced the reality of death. Death brings the question of life into immediate attention.
This is where most of us start to look deeper for answers, even within ourselves. We may question others who seem content with Enlightenment and something called ‘Awareness’. They have an eagerness to learn about the Universe, Consciousness, Feelings, and how to meditate to find the Silence.
This gives new meaning to the original question: “Does Age Affect What We Care About Life?” Probably.
As for me, I've made a pact with the Universe to share the thoughts, feelings, and insights that come from them. To do that, I can't live in the past or in hopes of some imagined future. It is the Present inside me, inside my heart, where I'm aware that love is forever.
Love never dies.
Why upgrade to paid? Why not?
Your paid subscription allows me
to keep showing up and writing
from my heart to share with
yours what I find there.
Thank you.
C.J. I loved your article and the truth of how the various stages of life affect us as we pass through them. I'm in the last stage, and sometimes in the wee small hours of the morning, it frightens the hell out of me. But, when that happens, I get the hell out of bed and start doing something. Usually, in the early morning, I love to walk and read. Almost immediately, the bad mood goes away, because I'm occupied. Then, like you, I write and I write at a Barnes in Noble with my wife, where I'm surrounded by a community of friends and more beloved books. I'm also actively involved in politics through INDIVISIBLE and since I'm working in one of their subgroups that keeps me busy. We can prevent the inevitable, but as long as we have our health (or what's left of it. LOL) we have to keep occupied. When I was 12 and read Bradbury's brilliant DANDELION WINE, I learned the importane of being AWARE, and I am and hope to do so until....
CJ Each stage leads and yields to the next. D