It was a big week in my circle for posts about aging, or maybe it’s agelessness. It began with a blog post from my friend Kathy Black entitled “All is Well…No Really!” about the wisdom of aging followed by another friend Bary Fleet’s poignant and lovely Facebook post, Extra Skin, his grandson’s observations of his aging neck. Last but not least is a blog from new friend Rose Dalton, A Silver Haired Woman Named…Sixty?. A brilliant middle finger to the cultural constructs of aging. I’ve been noodling all of this and I have to say, this is not my parent’s midlife!

When my kids were growing up the most popular game in our home was Nintendo’s Mario Brothers and the most popular question was, what level are you? I’m now thinking of age in terms of level. I didn’t come up with the concept and I don’t know who did, but I’m happy to adopt it. When the kids reached a new level, there was a lot of excitement, jumping around, and high-fiving. Imagine on your next birthday calling everyone over for a celebration of excitement and high-fiving because, “you’ve discovered the treasure and reached level 57 or 63, or 70,” or whatever level you’re at. It sounds like so much more fun!! Definitely not my parent’s midlife.

My friend Bary (mentioned above), is at level 70. In the last few years he started competing in triathlons and is a newly ordained Science of Mind minister. There is no dust collecting on this man. Another friend, Kathie M, also level 70, is an avid cyclist who completed a one-month, 600-mile+ bike tour in Eastern Europe a couple years ago. Since then, she has biked the Outer Banks in North Carolina and recently Glacier National Park in Montana. She’ll be cycling the Finger Lakes area of New York later this summer. I have friends who’ve reinvented their careers in midlife, myself included, others who are getting their art out into the world, and still others who are living dreams of travel and adventure. And this is just in my little corner of the world!!

Those of us at level 50 and up are shifting the paradigm of aging. We’ve become more aware. We think differently, more expansively about life and possibilities. We embrace our spirituality on a far deeper level and understand more clearly the power of choice and how the power of thought shapes our experiences.  In A Silver Haired Woman Named…Sixty?, Rose refers to this as a new Spiritual Genetic Code that we’ve all been graced with. I just love that! We’re no longer retiring to the rocking chair, rather we’re rocking this new level of wisdom, experience, and life. We continue to discover treasure in each new level and we’re giving a middle finger to what society tells us aging should look like.

In the words of C.S.Lewis, “You’re never too old to set a new goal or dream a new dream.” This is not my parent’s midlife. And it’s probably not be your parent’s midlife either, nor should it be. So…what’s your level? And, what’s your dream.

From my heart to yours,
Elaine

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