The greatest aspect of living a long, healthy existence is that we get to practice being a well-rounded human. If we are lucky enough to grow old we can continually enhance our qualities and abilities that allow us to suceed in many areas of our life. We can continue to grow, adapt and evolve, balancing our personal and profession lives. We have an internal wisdom that we now know we can trust.
I have failed multiple times. I've failed exams, relationships, my marriage, my attempts to not drink, my pursuit of happiness. I've failed at projects, new recipes, consistent stretching routines and home waxing kits that went horribly wrong. These failures lead us to be better. Just because it's hard doesn't mean it's not worth trying. To fail means we had the courage to at least try. The well-rounded human is open to new experiences. And life is just the accumulation of all these experiences.
As we move forward we need to show ourselves some compassion. Life can be a messy affair and being human is a messy affair. When we try to make change, know that we will fail, fall off the wagon, forget to stretch, forget to be nice, and fail to remember that we were trying to eat healthy and go for the fries instead. We can proceed one day at a time and then one day that decision may come. That decision, that you never have to question ever again. Decide to incorporate the lifestyle hacks that are good for our body and soul, deciding to increase healthful habits while leaving less space for unhealthful ones. Be proud of yourself for just showing up and trying, one day, one weekend, one month at a time.
Your life has been directed by kids, work, family, social status, government, the media and it's time to take your life back. You know more than anyone what you need to do right now. Follow your heart. It doesn't matter what others are doing, focus on what you need. In Toastmasters we are taught that our words matter, our words are powerful. Just changing one word can make all the difference. I've struggled with a positive mindset for most of my life. It's just not easy for me. Changing "I have to go to work" to "I get to go to work" is and example of one word that can influence my mindset. I get to go to the gym. I choose to eat healthier. I want to meditate and work toward being a well-rounded human but I also want to treat myself to ice-cream and a latte every once in a while.
I hope you can embrace aging and appreciate it for what it is; an opportunity to surrender expectations and just be. I'm working toward being a better human, for myself and the people around me. This is an ongoing process with set backs and disappointments but I keep showing up for myself. I'm learning to lean into the bad parts, the parts about me I dont' like, because you can't have light without darkness. I know where I want to go, the type of person I want to be and hopefully I have a couple more decade ahead to practice getting there. The world needs more well-rounded people, I hope to see you there.
Comentarios