Aging

by Eduardo del Buey

Aging

There is no end. There is no beginning. There is only the infinite passion of life,"

Federico Fellini

The soul doesn’t age.

Rather, it is the source of the passion of life that is the energy that keeps us pursuing happiness and enjoying the experience of living despite the passage of time.

Aging is a natural process for those of us lucky enough to get there.

Getting old is a physiological process. The body evolves over time, becoming weaker until it reaches its time to transit from this plane of existence.

Growing old is a process we can manage.

We can use our time here to develop spiritually and emotionally in order to ensure that our time here is productive and a source of positive energy and results.

As we age, we have the choice of acquiring wisdom and enjoying a process of spiritual and emotional growth or simply resigning ourselves to existing with no rhyme or reason.

What matters is the last and not the first chapter of our life.

Throughout our lives, we strive to gain things. The acquisition of wealth, love, success, and admiration drive us forward and consume much of our energy.

We leave for tomorrow the search for meaning and spiritual development, without realizing that these are the prime determinants of a successful golden age and eventual peaceful transition at the end.

Khalil Gibran once noted that man struggles to find life outside himself, unaware that the life he seeks lies within.

Seeking our solutions within is key to developing the framework of strength we need to deal with reality and give meaning to our past, present, and whatever future remains.

The conclusions we reach on the basis of reflection and introspection solidifies who we have been and defines who we have become.

But even though we are older and closer to the end, we are still becoming, and how we manage becoming is what gives our old age meaning and quiet joy.

Becoming is a moment-by-moment process.

It entails acceptance of who we were and appreciation for whom we have become.

Our past defines the being we have become.

And our gratitude for all the blessings that life has given us serve to strengthen our resolve to make a difference for those whom we love and for ourselves.

We must continue to nurture our creativity and set goals for ourselves.

We must continue to allow our passion for things steer our course in order to remain productive and engaged.

We live in a complicated and often cruel world.

Our emotions are often torn between our own need for survival and our sympathy for the victims of the violence that consumes many in our fight for survival.

We ask ourselves how we can fight for the survival of our own values in the wake of those who would destroy them and enslave us in alien beliefs and theologies.

We must realize that we as individuals cannot change the course of history.

We can only strengthen our own spiritual and emotional resolve to achieve the peace we need to engage with reality successfully and ensure that reality doesn’t overwhelm us.

We can only make a difference if we align ourselves with others who share our values and beliefs and who are aging in ways similar to ours.

Together we can make a difference, even if only for ourselves and the inner world of joy and peace that we wish to ensure.

When you don’t understand the above, you depend on concepts of reality defined by others.

When you do understand, reality depends on you.

And understanding depends on the relationship you have with your intuition and your ability to translate its messages into action.

You cannot expect a positive future if you cling to the negative aspects of your past.

Focus on all of the positive elements of your life and let them fuel your energy as you move forward.

As René Descartes once said, conquer yourself instead of the world.

And the result will give us the power to enjoy our lives as age and grow old in wisdom and self-realization.