“the opposite of crisis is called mental development (development of consciousness).”
(found on Google searching for the opposite of the word “crisis”)
This morning I woke up thinking about the phrase “midlife crisis”. Why is it that when we turn a certain age and then we do something deemed impulsive and “out of character” it’s assumed that “he’s just having a midlife crisis.”
You see I just turned 50 years old. Or maybe I just turned 50 years young. Depends on your point of view. I also just purchased a motorcycle. Definitely impulsive and irrational to the uninformed observer even though I’ve been riding motorcycles since I was 12 (smaller versions since I was 2) and have been dreaming of owning one again since my last motorcycle that I sold to pay for my son Nick’s mid-wife. That was 1990.
Wikipedia has a wonderful wealth of information about mid life crisis’s. “Midlife crisis is a term used to describe a period of dramatic self-doubt that is typically felt in the "middle years" of life, as people sense the passing of youth and the imminence of old age.” Also: “The result may be a desire to make significant changes in core aspects of day to day life or situation, such as in career, marriage, or romantic relationships.”
What if in fact it wasn’t a crisis at all this passage of time called getting older? What if it was a celebration? What if we actually enjoyed the awareness that comes with the natural aging process? What if instead of searching for our “lost youth” we actually embraced this beautiful phase of our life? I see this process at play all around me – in nature mostly, but also often in the “older” generation I come in contact with. The inherent beauty in Life is what I’m talking about. It’s a process this birth to death journey and I’m seeing the magic in each phase. It’s in my 11 month old son Bodhi learning so many new things for the first time. It’s in my 82 year old mother so filled with an ageless joy as she plays with her newest grandchild. It’s in me as I cross the 50 yard line of my life full of gratitude for all that I have experienced so far.
Again from Wikipedia: “Researchers have found that midlife is often a time for reflection and reassessment, but this is not always accompanied by the psychological upheaval popularly associated with "midlife crisis".
What if instead of finding oneself in crisis it was actually a time for a shift in consciousness? What if we had this great explosion of awareness as we see the organic process of being born, aging and then returning to the infinite from where we originated? What if in each moment we embraced the idea that life isn’t measured in days or months or years? What if we acknowledged that time is something we humans invented and that there is another way to mark the transit of one’s life?
What if by being present in each moment we were no longer bound by the concept of time? What if we made choices based in our awareness that what is happening to us is as natural as the changing of the seasons? What if those choices were made from that place of wonder and innocence of really knowing we are a mystery exactly like life and age is really just ageless.
Ok back to the motorcycle thing. I wanted to celebrate my living on this planet for 50 years. In a very small symbolic way the motorcycle represents a milestone and a simple way for me to express joy and freedom. Besides it’s pretty sexy too…
Freedom, huh? That’s my next blog. Until then keep the rubber side down.
In Love, Light, and Awareness,
J
(found on Google searching for the opposite of the word “crisis”)
This morning I woke up thinking about the phrase “midlife crisis”. Why is it that when we turn a certain age and then we do something deemed impulsive and “out of character” it’s assumed that “he’s just having a midlife crisis.”
You see I just turned 50 years old. Or maybe I just turned 50 years young. Depends on your point of view. I also just purchased a motorcycle. Definitely impulsive and irrational to the uninformed observer even though I’ve been riding motorcycles since I was 12 (smaller versions since I was 2) and have been dreaming of owning one again since my last motorcycle that I sold to pay for my son Nick’s mid-wife. That was 1990.
Wikipedia has a wonderful wealth of information about mid life crisis’s. “Midlife crisis is a term used to describe a period of dramatic self-doubt that is typically felt in the "middle years" of life, as people sense the passing of youth and the imminence of old age.” Also: “The result may be a desire to make significant changes in core aspects of day to day life or situation, such as in career, marriage, or romantic relationships.”
What if in fact it wasn’t a crisis at all this passage of time called getting older? What if it was a celebration? What if we actually enjoyed the awareness that comes with the natural aging process? What if instead of searching for our “lost youth” we actually embraced this beautiful phase of our life? I see this process at play all around me – in nature mostly, but also often in the “older” generation I come in contact with. The inherent beauty in Life is what I’m talking about. It’s a process this birth to death journey and I’m seeing the magic in each phase. It’s in my 11 month old son Bodhi learning so many new things for the first time. It’s in my 82 year old mother so filled with an ageless joy as she plays with her newest grandchild. It’s in me as I cross the 50 yard line of my life full of gratitude for all that I have experienced so far.
Again from Wikipedia: “Researchers have found that midlife is often a time for reflection and reassessment, but this is not always accompanied by the psychological upheaval popularly associated with "midlife crisis".
What if instead of finding oneself in crisis it was actually a time for a shift in consciousness? What if we had this great explosion of awareness as we see the organic process of being born, aging and then returning to the infinite from where we originated? What if in each moment we embraced the idea that life isn’t measured in days or months or years? What if we acknowledged that time is something we humans invented and that there is another way to mark the transit of one’s life?
What if by being present in each moment we were no longer bound by the concept of time? What if we made choices based in our awareness that what is happening to us is as natural as the changing of the seasons? What if those choices were made from that place of wonder and innocence of really knowing we are a mystery exactly like life and age is really just ageless.
Ok back to the motorcycle thing. I wanted to celebrate my living on this planet for 50 years. In a very small symbolic way the motorcycle represents a milestone and a simple way for me to express joy and freedom. Besides it’s pretty sexy too…
Freedom, huh? That’s my next blog. Until then keep the rubber side down.
In Love, Light, and Awareness,
J
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