To accept the challenge of intentional aging means you are seeking something different..something special in the second half. You want to leave something more of yourself to the world.
But, alas, there are no maps! No "12 Step" program for successful aging. No hard bound textbook on the "do's and don'ts" for aging intentionally. Not even an agreement about what the term really means. We are all in a metaphorical boat together leaving our comfortable port and going out on uncharted waters. Are you excited or do you feel lost? I admit to feeling both!
There have never been so many people on the planet who will live to be 100. There has never been a more educated, healthy, and, some people believe, affluent group than the Baby-Boomers. There has never been a collective age group of world citizens who will venture in to the uncharted waters of an extended second half of life. Indeed this is a revolution and there are tens of millions of people who are going through this process.
If there are no maps, where will we, then, find guidance for the trip? Jenny and I believe it is from inside our selves. It comes from a willingness to look deeply at who we are at this time of life as we locate the nexus of personal values, a lifetime of experiences, and renewed sense of life purpose. And then..... letting that guide our life choices!
It is a commitment to living authentically as we really are and to find ways to be a unique blessing to our communities and the world. This is the challenge of aging intentionally!
We are all writing the Book of Intentional Aging together. Neither is this a solo journey. This demands that we create relationships that support this inner exploration. It also requires that we look out for one another and communicate our findings as we go. I am very much looking forward to it!
I hope you will share your journey in this space.
Blessings for your journey!
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