“Just remember, when you’re over the hill, you begin to pick up speed.”

Charles M. Schulz

I’m glad that I write an initial draft of a blog post, then allow it to marinate for a while. I think that process is important because it allows me a little objectivity and perspective…my first draft was very “sensationalist” making bold statements that I can’t possibly know until I reach a certain point in life…therefore I present to you, a more truthful state of opinion;

That being said…

I must confess…

I enjoy getting older.

The older I get, the closer I get to understanding another piece of the puzzle and it is a process that I do not want to prevent, defy, fight or delay.

I speak on this subject from a male perspective…if I was female I might not have necessarily arrived at the same conclusion? As the constant pounding headache of pressure from the media for women to maintain certain physical standards is ridiculous!

But as man, society doesn’t judge me as harshly, as being older, wiser and more experienced are still deemed attractive traits. If you want to put my concept to the test just ask any woman over the age of 27 if she would date a guy 5 years her junior…I’ll pretty much guarantee she’ll say no.

I was never a particularly athletic youth, so I picked up the habit of jogging at about 30 and haven’t put it down almost 10 years later! For every year that passes my technique improves and I run a little  further than I did the year before. There is no doubt that I am a much better lover of life than I was even 5 years ago, as I fully appreciate the power of touch and can capture the heart with genuine conversation over any social status I may have or lack (more on that in a future post)

Ageing has taught me that mainstream media is a poor teacher of universal truth and that some of our darkest moments are our greatest teachers…and don’t worry this isn’t my audition to appear on Super Soul Sunday with Oprah!

You either have the good fortune of getting older or you don’t and despite what we tell ourselves it really isn’t the good who die young but the unfortunate. Even in the best case post-life scenario; moving gracefully toward an all-encompassing heavenly white light, I’m still not too excited by the idea that one day I will cease to exist.

It is against the backdrop of my mortality that I appreciate the ultimate commodity…life…and all the positive and negative consequences it brings. I wouldn’t consider myself to have an eternal sunshine within my spotless mind but I really can’t see another alternative to living that doesn’t involve death.

I am not an indestructible optimist and I’m simply not naïve enough to believe all people live the same quality of life I do. I am aware some people have survived inconceivable situations therefore making the quality of their existence so unbearable the idea of death actually becomes a pretty attractive proposition.

Yet despite the deep gratitude I have for advancing in years, I can’t help but wonder if I will feel the same in 15 or 20 years from now? At the moment, I’m really enjoying the exploration of my mentality and physicality and to lose that will be a very sad day…

In the meantime I am not suggesting that everyone should run out and live each day to its fullest! Who has the energy for that anyway!? But what I do recommend is that people start to appreciate all the thousands of random elements that made it possible for you to be here.

The youngest I will ever be is now, as by the time I have finished this post some subtle ageing would have taken place, so I don’t think I’ll wait to receive a life shattering diagnosis to value the random act of chance that has allowed me to live another day, within the complex simplicity of that thing we call…

Life.

Until next time.