Older and Better

Reading from Tuesday and Wednesday, May 19 and 20, 2015 yoga classes

I turned 63 last Friday.  I went to my yoga class at Yoga East the next day.  It was a new class that my teacher began the week before... an intermediate class.  The class was Sun Salutations from A-Z. We got to S.  After class, I went up to my teacher, Laura, and told her I had turned 63 yesterday and that today I FELT 63.  She just laughed and asked me how old I really felt inside... yeah, probably 25. So... I came across the following article:

From an article entitled "I'm Not One of Those Gals Afraid to Tell Her Real Age" by Andrea Ferretti

"Remember those  moments, as a kid, when you just  couldn't wait to be a grown-up?  You wanted to ride your bike with your friends after dark/dye your hair purple/sleep over at your boyfriend's house and you agonized when your parents wouldn't let you?  Or do you remember feeling lost as a young adult and wishing that you had things "more figured out?"

Now,  do you remember when the flip switched and you and your friends started lamenting, "Ugggggh,  I'm soooooo old.  How did this happen?!!"

I'm writing this on my 43rd birthday.  And I want to erase the "I'm so old" lament phrase from my consciousness.  A big part of the reason we had that desire to become grown up is because we wanted control of our lives.  We weren't conscious of it, but we burned with the desire to step into our identities, and into our potential.  As we age, that opportunity to hone our focus, to embrace who we are, and to become more skillful at living happily is right here, within our reach.  Complaining that we are "so old," or perhaps worse, believing that being old is so bad, is a recipe for suffering.  Put simply: it's not fair to allow this inner narrative to percolate inside of us without, at least, questioning its origin.  It's a subtle form of self-sabotage, a way to take us away from what's really truly present right now.

If you are reading this and thinking----Mmmm, I'm not buying it, then I'll put it this way: Think of how much better you are at everything in your life than you were 10, 15, or 20 years ago.

Here are few examples:

I'm a better cook

I know how to dress for body

My yoga practice feels better

I'm better and more efficient at my job

It's easier to say no

I have better relationships

I'm nicer.  I'm less cynical.  I'm more courageous

Finally, I have fully embraced the fact and am not ashamed that I like nonfiction better than fiction.


So.... here's MY list of things I feel better about since I've gotten older:

I realize how strong I am.

That everybody is NOT going to like me and I don't have to try so hard.

That I don't want to be the same as everyone else

That I know Truth by the way it feels.

NO is a complete sentence.

And finally, from a quote I found on the Internet which says:  "Do no harm, but take no shit."

So... what about you?   No matter how old you are.... what are the things that YOU feel better about as you have become older?  I would LOVE to see your lists.