Age But Never Get Old!

Throughout time there have been many theories on why we age. I always thought it would be better if we rot only after we die, not while living! One day, I had an epiphany. We get old - because we think we will! I know this sounds silly, but truly, we are conditioned to believe in certain stages of life, be a child, then a teenager, become an adult, get old, then death. We have even conditioned ourselves on what age certain things will happen. I have always disliked the term "mid life" because to me, this decides when life will end. If you can choose a "mid" then you must have chosen an approximate time when a person should cease to exist.

I do understand we can not actually stop aging. There are cycles to life and our planet would become extremely full if no one died while others were born. But we can stop conditioning. How often do you hear or have you said "Stop that! You are too old to do that!" or "Act your age!" My response is -What is my age? Age defined by what, the calendar man created or an age chosen by the Universe? Compared to the Universe we are so infinitely young, in extreme babyhood.

Aging itself is not the problem. Losing quality of life is. What joy would there be to living a long life if you spend more than half of it physically "old"? I see those like my mother who is now 72 do more in one day than most people do in a month and outwork half the young men I know. I see people in their fifties (and younger) hunched over with the fatigue of life, shuffling along as if already on the road to death. I hear people turning 30 who whine about being "old". And I remember George Burns who even when he looked old had the forever twinkle of youth in his eyes right until the day he left this world behind.

When I turned thirty, I started thinking "I am getting old". I found myself acting older. I looked in the mirror and searched for the wrinkles and thought in terms of building for retirement. But deep inside, I still felt like me. I still wanted to laugh and play, be silly at times and enjoy life. And as always, I watched people. What made some old and what made some seem forever youthful? What was the difference between youth and the aged? The answer finally came to me one day while watching my children and my cat play. It was how we acted, how we played and how we found joy in life that determined the quality of our existence. The "Fountain of Youth" is found ....in youth itself.

Children and cats are the best example on how to stay healthy and enjoy life. It starts the minute they wake to face the day. If you watch a little child or a cat wake up, you notice both will stretch before ever leaving their bed. Every little muscle is stretched, awakened and acknowledged. I realized, I had done this when young but I no longer did. I started making an effort to take the time to stretch every morning and soon, I found aching muscles disappeared and I felt more awake when I jumped (instead of stumbling) out of bed.

The cat and the child both will jet off for a quick bite to eat. They eat small amounts several times a day and drink fluids all day long. They bounce, they jump, they skip, and they sleep when they get tired, letting their bodies create the rhythm and the schedule. "Cat napping" or "Power Napping" at work has even become recognized by many companies as a method to boost productivity and creativity even though some jobs still see napping on the job as a firing offense. Sleep scientist Sara Mednick's 2006 book, Take a Nap, Change Your Life emphasized this. Mednick suggests a 20 minute nap after lunch between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. would be ideal. Personally I have never been a "napaholic" but my Mother - the most productive human I have ever known - faithfully naps each afternoon. I do "spacing out" very well though and this seems to work the same for me.

A child finds pleasure in the little things and looks at everything with wonder. As we "age" we become jaded and forget to look at simple pleasures to entertain ourselves. If you have to be more mature, digging in the dirt can transform into gardening and weeding although I have to admit I dig up pretty rocks "just because". Riding bicycles, hula hoops, jump ropes ....all have been proven to be great exercise, and if nothing else you will laugh yourself silly at the effort and laughter also is a wonderful dose of "youthfulness". When you pass a playground, stop for a quick swing. You will be amazed how good you feel after a few wonderful swings into the air. Okay, so if you decide on the teeter totters or merry go around...try to play before mass consuming large quantities of food or liquids!

Wear a funky hat or scarf or piece of jewelry or even a flower in your hair (in other words play "dress up") to give yourself a playful feeling. Draw and paint even if you are not "good" at it. Who cares? Even a stick figure can be art! All children are naturally "A.D.D." to a certain degree in their ability to dart from this to that but in reality it is merely the sign of an active brain. Getting stuck in routines and schedules can age you. Break free of your routine sometimes, taste new foods, discover new places, and never, ever quit feeding your mind and your senses with fresh knowledge and experiences. Sometimes, this requires going backwards and rediscovering "childish" pleasures.

Instead of saying "If I only had the energy of a child" - recreate that energy. Finding the energy source is not a big mystery....just observe the one with the energy you want and learn by example. And quit thinking "old"! I refuse. In fact, when people ask my age I look at them blankly and say "I dunno." - Which is - actually....true unless I actually think about it. Old...is for a piece of furniture and even then it is called an "antique"(a word with some dignity!). Old is for when you have given up and lost all connection to the simple pleasures of life. Old is not for me. I'm hanging with my cat and anyone child enough to swing higher than me!

*My inspiration is my wonderful Aries friend Amy Goodwin. Thank you Amy for always being the best child around even after giving birth to tons of boys you can still out climb!

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The child inside me! :)

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