The Power and Grace of Later Life
I’m writing a new book. More accurately, I’ve begun thinking about a new book. The working title is, you guessed it, The Power and Grace of Later Life: A Post-60 Guide to Health, Longevity, and Wonder. It will delve into some of the ideas I’ve covered in these posts so I thought I’d share a general thematic outline of what I’m thinking about.
Later life is a distinct and wondrous time to be alive. It is the time of life when insights about our lives are much more available to us than during our previous “working and doing” years. In my case, concepts I’ve been wondering about all my life—about myself and about life and existence in general—have become clearer and more emotionally grounded inside me. No doubt, these kinds of thoughts are naturally in my wheelhouse. But this time of life, with its more profound awareness of mortality, provides a solid foundation for us to ponder and embrace wonder.
The Greater Part of Us
Most of us go through our lives unaware of the miracles we are. The greater part of us is the 90% of us that is not our conscious mind or the self we think we are -- our flesh and blood, our inner lives, our often-unlived potentials, and most of all the life force that keeps it all going. We take all this for granted as we go about our days, until that is, something happens that shakes up our perceptions. In my case it was the dawning of later life, with its heightened sense of mortality, in my late fifties, and the health mission I undertook for my two then infant daughters, my “Life Yet to Live” that I write about in my book. Once that realization hits, the power, and grace, of the forces that keep us and this planet alive, become an ever-precious wonder to behold and to be grateful for.
The Awakening of Awe
In the first volume of his Historical Atlas of World Mythology, titled The Way of the Animal Powers, Joseph Campbell wrote of the moment our first human ancestor realized that he or she was going to die one day. This probably happened untold thousands of years ago, when our ability to think abstractly, to predict things, was forming. Campbell writes that this moment changed everything about human history from that point onward. He called this moment the “The Awakening of Awe.”
I believe I’m not the only one experiencing these kinds of insights and recognizing that this time of life encourages reflecting on themes that are bigger than just our daily lives. These insights lead us to think of the larger picture—the universe and our place in it. Science has given us a tremendous understanding of the universe, yet it is still mysterious. I believe that the greatest mystery is still us ourselves, how we came to exist, how we work, and why we behave the way we do.
A New Awareness
Becoming aware of these dynamics and focusing on my own health as I get older has led me to a new awareness of just how connected my existence is with the existence of everything around me. As I wrote in my recent article on “Meditation,” our breath is to our bodies as the sun’s gravity and energy are to our solar system. Both our breath and the sun operate on the same life-giving principles, lending their power and rhythm to the existence of the bodies, and planets, they serve. Harmonizing and aligning with these rhythms as much as possible serves our health well. In addition, this awareness leads me to more perspective, compassion, and patience in life in general.
Many cultures embrace some version of later-life awareness. The Hindus have sanyasa, a period of deep spirituality toward the end of life. The long-lived Japanese of Blue Zone places like Okinawa focus more deeply on ikigai, or inner purpose of life, as they get older. While many countries and cultures in Europe and the Americas don’t have formally recognized traditions like these, research shows that many of these countries’ elders increasingly turn to religion and spirituality as they get older. These elders may be trying to make sense of their own lives as they feel their mortality more keenly. But I think there is also a profound wisdom, which the world desperately needs, that can come from encouraging older people to delve into these depths and share insights from their journeys.
I believe the core idea of making this time of life extremely special is to acknowledge and be grateful for the vast powers that actually run things in our lives. And I don’t mean governments or political leaders. I mean universal energy, the life force within us, and the vast hidden reserves of our own inner powers when we acknowledge them and work at uncovering them. This is the timeless work of self-realization and self-discovery to understand who we are, how we got here, and what we are meant to be doing if our lives are to have meaning. It is the work that sages, spiritual icons, poets, and philosophers have been doing since the dawn of known history. It is the stuff of the human soul, reminiscent of that first ancestor who felt wonder at his or her own life and mortality. And it more and more pervades our lives if we stay aware as we get older.
Bucket Days
Of course, we need our physical health to do all this. And the pursuit of physical health helps us become more aware of the larger, eternal lessons of life and health. So, this brings me full circle, back to my original “aha-moment” and commitment to increase my lifespan and healthspan, which will allow me to reflect on and pursue all of these things.
Unraveling this mystery is the work of health, of spirit, of emotion and feelings, and of parenting and teaching to help not pass on our own problems. It is a deeper dive into the next frontier of human existence. My own ongoing journey in these realms has yielded greater happiness, greater health, and greater understanding of who I am. I want to stick around and stay healthy for as long as possible to continue the daily wonder, awe, power and grace of living this way. These days are my “Bucket Days”, of which there will be many examples in the new book. They are precious days of healthy life filled with insight, activity and as much peace as I can manage in modern life.
Anyway, thanks for reading. I’m not sure how many people are as keen as me to take this journey, but I’m hoping my new book can help me take a deeper dive into something I’m passionate about and better convey the sense of wonder life gives me.
