It’s time to get over the fear of aging
I rolled my eyes at the TV.
Another current affairs segment on how to beat aging. The latest youth miracle cream was out.
News flash: the best way to beat aging is to get over it.
Fact of life alert: you are going to age. Deal with it.
I know we love our youthful appearances and vitality. It’s the greatest thing about living, but just because the wrinkles appear doesn’t mean our youth is lost.
If you spend all your days worrying about the loss of elasticity then how can you fully appreciate the joy of life?
Sure I scrutinize the lines on my face. The intake of my breath is sharp as I wonder how I got old so fast.
But then I stop to think about it. It didn’t happen so fast and if I peer deep within, I am still so young. I still have so much living to do and so much to achieve.
If I let the lines tell the story then I will simply stop and spend my days searching for the next big elixir of life. Like the Queen in Snow White. We all know the hatred and jealousy that consumed her days.
Did you see the bleakness that surrounded her?
She missed out on life, on love, on joy.
The lines tell the story
Source: beatricebp.com via Caz and Craig @yTravelBlog on Pinterest
Last night I lay in my bed reading, I looked down at my hands.
I was surprised to see how old and wrinkled they looked. But I did not feel fear or regret, I felt wonder.
“Wow. Look at my hand.”
All I could see were my stories. I peered deeply. How did that happen? How did I get to live so much?
Look at all the wisdom I have to share.
The wrinkles around your eyes and your mouth prove that you laughed a lot; the crease on your brow says you thought deeply; the hands tell the strength of your toiling; and those on your neck show that you never stopped reaching.
Forget the creams and injecting therapies. Most of them will take away your stories. You can’t teach and inspire with a face that can’t move and does not speak truth.
Instead, let your face radiate from the inside out. Work on your inner glow. It is that which will keep you young and vibrant, despite the wrinkles.
Nourish your skin and your eyes with water and good nutrition. Nourish your soul kind thoughts and deeds and happy living.
Drink coconut water and rub its oil over your skin. Relax with massages and alternative therapies. It will add years to your life and stories to your wisdom.
Embrace the aging and accept all stages of life as gift of new discoveries and strengths.
Comments
Christine Calabria
You know, Caz, I have never worried about ageing or people knowing how old I am! Even the kids in my primary school classes usually know how old I am! When Peter and I met we were either side of 50 and I said to him one day, “At least you’ve never seen me without wrinkles, so you have nothing to compare it to!” He laughed and said, “Wouldn’t worry me anyway, your wrinkles are part of the character I fell in love with!” We have decided that we want to grow old disgracefully together. Age has been no barrier to us starting a new business at this stage either. I look in the mirror sometimes and see my wrinkled face, but a smile always takes away any worries I might have! I figure the more wrinkled I am it just means and least I am still alive and kicking. I’d love to post a photo of my beautiful mother – I’ll do it on your F/B page… 95, wrinkly, but still beautiful! Age is a matter of how you think and has nothing to do with the wrinkled exterior! I have skin that will be very wrinkled and very fragile if I live to be in my eighties as it has always been extremely dry. My great grandmother had a very wrinkled face and I am supposed to be very like her, but I still looked at the beauty of her character, her upright genteelity, the way she always dressed so smartly (always the gloves and hat if she was going down the street to shop) and I loved her dearly! Age – come and get me – just let me have fun getting there!
Caz Makepeace
I so LOVE this comment Christine. It is totally the spirit of aging and wisdom, something to be embraced and revered. I would love to see a photo of your beautiful mother, please post it on the facebook page.
I love the story of you and Peter-thank you for sharing. Such a pleasure to have met the both of you in person and spent time in your lovely home.
For those stopping by in the comments be sure to check out http://artisansonthehill.com.au a beautiful place to stay and rest your wrinkles 🙂 He He
Kathy
Great post Caz – after a really busy, stressful few weeks I’ve found myself feeling ‘old’ and I’ve said that to myself – really I’m just tired. You are so right that we need to think of our age as our experience, maturity and our stories rather than our seeing ourselves as wrinkled, sagging and worn out.
Caz Makepeace
Yes, look at our inner goddesses not the outer. I think often of the way society treats the aged- like they are an inconvenience to be ignored. They have so many stories and so much wisdom to share. I love hearing the stories of the elderly.
Annie
I read a quote that really struck a chord with me about ageing:
“Do not regret getting older. Its a privilege denied to many”
And since the time I read that, its really helped me gain some perspective on the ageing process.
Caz Makepeace
Oh I LOVE This Annie. Thank you for sharing. Doesn’t that put a lot of things into perspective?
Jazzin Balfe
Very reassuring Caz….we need to be reminded of the positive aspects of aging because as you say there is so much propaganda out there to keep us looking young forever. A lot depends on the genes you inherit in terms of skin and the effects of aging but the best you can do is try to live a healthy life both in terms of nutrition and exercise and be thankful for another day of life which is brimming with endless possibilities that are yours to enjoy, experience and ´fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run` in the words of Rudyard Kipling. Thanks for sharing ….:)
Caz Makepeace
Pleasure Jazzin! Thank you for sharing those wise words of wisdom. Looking forever young takes away those years of stories and wisdom I’d rather show the world that I lived a life worth talking about.
Linda
Hi Caz – you have NO idea how much I love this post – it’s as if you were reading my mind of late – and I turned 66 in December. I never worried about this stuff until I hit 60 to be honest. Then I found myself fighting it with all my strength. It’s occurred to me recently that I was fighting the wrong thing – that I should be fighting against people’s common preception of age, and not against the fact that my age is showing. So, yeah, I have wrinkles and things sag, but I can still do almost everything I’ve always done. I went abseiling for the first time just over a year ago, and absolutely loved it. I guess that challenged my own perceptions and made me think. It’s great that you have your head around this at such a young age, because you won’t waste precious time later angsting about it! Nice one! Really, really nice one!
Caz Makepeace
I’m so happy you loved the post Linda! You look fabulous and such a strong age to reach too. So awesome that you went abseiling last year– that is your youthful spirit oozing out-that can never age, but will if you only focus on the outside.
I must say though I am a little obsessed with smearing coconut oil over my face lately, only because it feels so great and its a beautiful boost from nature each day!