Our Mind in Age

Aging really is something. While I’ve seen the gray hairs pop up and the wrinkles begin to stick, I’m really not here to complain about my own aging today—or really to complain at all. It’s more of an observation and something I find quite curious. At times, I feel like I’m watching my life on the television, as if it isn’t really happening to me or that the feelings I have are detached in some way.

I really do spend quite a bit of my time day after day talking to folks about retirement and how to plan for it so I am not a stranger to comments on aging and how people feel as they get older, but hearing and experiencing something are two very different things.

Most recently, my family and I just got back from a trip to Italy. It was an amazing trip packed with lots of experiences and places to visit, and even still, I’m sure I could have added another 2 to 3 weeks on the end of it and it still wouldn’t have been enough. While admittedly, I enjoyed this trip, I can honestly say that this is one of the first amazing trips I’ve been on that I have not been completely depressed with coming home. It isn’t because it wasn’t fun, but more because I feel myself changing.

We spend so much time focusing on our external appearances as we age or even how we physically feel that not much thought seems to be given to our minds (until they really noticeably go down hill!). What I find interesting are the little changes—my focus on calm and peace (clean air and a tranquil environment over endless adventure) and my preference for order. These are drastic changes from the “me” of twenty years ago.

I have no issue with myself now or the way I thought of twenty years ago, I simply find the nuances of life’s journey fascinating.

Happy writing this week!