This month I will celebrate 72 years on earth. Here are a few notes on the view from here.
There is only one thing I do not like about being older – I have less energy.
Were it possible, I should have saved half of my wasted energy for now.
Message to young earthlings: Use time and energy wisely.
The biggest difference I’ve noticed is that so much less really matters to me.
The Indigo Girls song says, “there must be a thousand things you would die for; I can hardly think of two”. I’m sure I had 1,000 in my 20s and 30s, maybe 500 in my 40s and 50s…I’m now down to two, my faith and my family.
Message to young earthlings: Prioritize what’s worth caring about.
It’s nice to finally have time to think.
Looking back, the worst decisions I made were hurried. I still make stupid decisions but now given more time, I make fewer.
Message to young earthlings: Read “Thinking Fast and Slow”
I’m noticing more little pleasures that are enjoyable, just by being more present.
A good weather day, a kindness in a grocery store line, a bird or small animal just “being”, laughter, a dance especially by someone very young or very old
Message to young earthlings: Come to the now.
Fear or fix only what has happened.
Those who paint dark or bright futures are simply trying to get my attention for political or monetary profit. When I allow stories about what has not happened to catch and keep my attention, I lose my present.
Message to young earthlings: Stick to what you know is true. Life is complicated enough without adding a dark or utopian future.
Trust, loyalty and forgiveness are of singular value.
I can name important relationships that began in each of the eight decades I’ve lived in. In each case, both me and the party I’m close with feel like we are getting the better end of the deal. Each of these enduring relationships still requires watering (trust) and weeding (forgiveness) to bloom (loyalty).
Message to young earthlings: Beyond service, if you find you’re doing all the heavy lifting in a relationship, it is not really an enduring one.
“And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love…you make.” — Lennon-McCartney
Peace,
Tim McCarthy
