The morning light has a different tenderness as we grow older.
I notice it now on my hands when I’m holding a warm cup of tea, or pulling a sweater around my shoulders, or standing at the sink looking out at a garden that has changed again without asking my permission. The tomatoes are done. The leaves are loosening. The soil is tired and faithful. And somewhere in all of that, I hear this little truth whispering:
Aging is not for sissies.
Oh goodness, no.
An 84-year-old friend shared that with me a couple weeks ago as we attended a TaijiFit practice together. Aging is not for sissies.
Aging is for curious, courageous, faith-filled folks willing to grow with change.
It is for those of us who have lived long enough to know that life does not always unfold the way we planned. Bodies change. Families change. Friendships change. Callings change. Energy changes. Roles change. Sometimes even our own reflection startles us a little. We may look in the mirror and think, Well, how did my mother get in there?
And yet, here we are.
Still breathing, learning, being invited.
Still sacred.
In the Creator-Based® Joy Meditation, we are reminded to breathe in light and exhale what is heavy, to let the shoulders drop, to soften the body, and to settle the soul into a safe, sacred moment. Then comes that powerful statement:
“I am the creator of my life experience.”
Not the controller of every circumstance. Not the manager of every outcome. Not the fixer of every person we love. But the creator of our life experience —
I am the one who can choose how I meet this day, this body, this season, this change.
That matters in aging. We cannot always choose what changes, but we can always choose whether we become hard or holy inside of it.
We can choose curiosity. Curiosity sounds like, “What is this season teaching me? What still wants to grow in me? What beauty can I create on purpose today? What if this change is not only loss, but also invitation?”
Now, I’ll be honest. I do not always greet change with a hymn and a grateful heart. Often I greet it with criticism, worry, a little dramatic sighing, and a pity party. Remember, courage in aging is not pretending we love every change. Courage is staying open while change keeps coming.
The Creator-based way gives us a beautiful pattern for creation. Try it. It works. When you’re not feeling yourself:
- choose the feeling you would like to feel,
- choose the delivery method,
- choose your action, take it to your Creator, and then
- do an introspective review — “What went well?”
Simple, right?
So, if we wake up feeling stiff, lonely, or uncertain, we can begin there.
1. What feeling would I like to create today?
Maybe peace, perhaps steadiness. Don’t forget joy, and always compassion for this body that has carried school books, babies, burdens, grief, groceries, prayers, and generations.
2. How could that feeling be delivered?
Get curious and see what comes forward. Try these ideas on and see what comes.
A short walk, a text or phone call to one who needs it, happy music, TaijiFit, stretching, a warm bath?
A few minutes of stillness? A gentle apology, a gratitude prayer whispered before our feet touch the floor?
3. Choose one. Do it.
Seriously. Do it. Small and simple things matter. We create through work, risk, time, and small efforts — then “small + simple steps repeated.”
We can strengthen one relationship. We can move one joint with kindness. We can forgive and offer compassion to one old story a little more.
Aging is not for sissies.
It is for women who have buried dreams and planted new ones.
It is for grandparents who keep loving even when family life is complicated.
It is for caregivers who are tired but still tender.
It is for widows and widowers learning the shape of an altered home.
It is for bodies that ache and spirits that still reach heavenward.
It is for people who are willing to become beginners again.
Join us in curiosity this week! Let’s do one small and simple thing.
All my love,
