Welcome to Aging In Full Bloom



Listen here. Open your eyes to possibility of living out loud and aging in full bloom.  If you are reading this, your ending has not been written. You owe it to yourself to live with your arms wide open greeting each new day as your own personal opportunity for growth, happiness and new beginnings.   

A NEW KIND OF FREEDOM COMES WITH AGING...

Freedom from the grind of all the demands associated with earlier stages of life like the challenges of building a career or being a caregiver.  Consider the following quote from an email entitled Aging and Friendship submitted to the Echo Press:

"Whose business is it if I choose to read, or play on the computer, until 4 a.m., or sleep until noon?  I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50s, 60s and 70s, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love, I will.

I will walk the beach, in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves, with abandon, if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set. I know I am sometimes forgetful.  But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And, eventually, I remember the important things."  

A RETURN TO HAPPINESS COMES WITH AGING...

Research indicates that people report being happiest in their youth and then again in their 70s and early 80s. People report being least happy during those years associated with mid-life.  Why?  Maybe it’s because older people have come to understand the value of happiness, and they have learned how to be happy along the way.  They know that happiness is a personal choice.  It is not contingent upon circumstances or the things that have happened in life.  It’s a way of thinking and knowing.  It is closely connected to one’s ability to appreciate the small pleasures like taking a warm bath or a watching the sun set.  It is also closely connected to purposeful living which generally includes maintaining close social ties and engaging in meaningful activities that promote the greater good. 


NEW OPPORTUNITIES COME WITH AGING...

Many seniors report the opportunity to focus on hobbies and talents that had to be put on hold in their earlier years.  Some return to the university to earn advanced degrees or audit classes without the pressure of exams and assignments.  Others discover hidden talents they never knew they had.  For example, my own mother discovered that she is a talented painter late in life.  Some are blessed with grandchildren and describe being a grandparent very differently than being a parent.   Eva Figes wrote in It's a Nan's World that the difference between being a mother and a grandmother is like the difference between marriage and a love affair.  Apparently, she is enjoying being a grandmother quite a lot.  

Comments

  1. FurahaJanuary 21, 2020 at 3:53 AM

    I totally agree with all that has been written. As a blooming 71 year old I feel and experience doing it my way! I love to dance bring folks together and laugh. I work full-time because I like being with different ages and it gives me purpose to get out of bed on a daily basis. Thanks for confirming what I knew to be true and it's a must share ��

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lisa StockdaleJanuary 22, 2020 at 7:53 PM

    Thank you for your positive feedback. Keep on aging in full bloom and being an inspiration.

    ReplyDelete

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