I have always enjoyed birthdays and with the exception of my 10th birthday I made it a point of highlighting each decennial birthday. It was my way to say goodbye to the group of digits to which I would no longer belong, and a hello to the next set of digits which hopefully would bring additional and wonderful life experiences without too much pain and anguish. I concede that each of these decennial birthdays came with their very own mix of emotions and sentiments. However, the big 5 – 0 was looming larger than the rest and its effects could be felt shortly before my 49th birthday. Something tells me that many of you know of what I speak. I am a big believer that in order to grow we need to get uncomfortable and that I definitely was. So how do I make peace with this milestone? Graceful acceptance, although it didn’t start off that way. I am no longer fighting fifty (like that is even possible—yeesh), but rather, I have come to embrace the fact that I am one of the lucky ones that in several short weeks will be blessed with this medal of honour (knock on wood—let’s face it, anything can happen between now and then). After all, much blood, sweat and tears make up our journeys and we should be proud of what we have surmounted and how we have grown, even if, where we have landed, is far removed from where we had envisioned ourselves being.
Allow me to share the lessons I have learned a strive to live by;
Learn to put yourself first—by nurturing you, everyone around you benefits.
Don’t sweat the small stuff—maintain your energy level, because life has a way of throwing us big stuff.
Master the art of doing nothing—seriously, there is something so very liberating when you can just be still.
Purge—release everything that sucks your energy, and cherish all that supports and charges you up, whatever or whoever they may be.
Promote a healthy lifestyle—truly, without health, we are poor. I healthy body, mind and spirit allow us to attract better circumstances and to take pleasure in them.
Be grateful—be thankful, especially for the small stuff. This has a way of putting things in perspective.
So where do we go from here?
My answer is anywhere that gives us wings, is beneficial for us. There is something to be said with turning fifty and that’s the realization that we have less time to repeat the same old patterns, or to chase our tails and as a result, turning fifty has a way of simultaneously encouraging us to seek out fulfilling and pleasurable experiences and being serious about it. Fifty has a way to smarten us up and to make us take notice of the things that are no longer working in our lives and to set us about correcting this, charting a new course. Our aim now, if I may be so bold, should be to understand who we really and truly are, know our likes and desires and to be kind to ourselves beginning with forgiveness. And if we haven’t already done so, realize our dreams. It’s never too late.
Remember, life begins at fifty! 😉
I would love to hear from you and your experience building up to, turning or beyond fifty. Do leave a comment.
If you know of someone that would enjoy this blog by all means like and share. Thank you.
Comments