Life Ahead

I have not reached the “coasting” into retirement model as I am too young to think it’s arrived. Still, I am reinventing the image of what I think the next few decades will look like. As I watch my parents and others age forward, I realize that in just a few years I will be their age also. Am I prepared?

So. I revamp what I think life will be, how technology will assist, and what tools are available to the health care providers to let me move ahead successfully. But that doesn’t mean I will coast. No. Nope. Not me. It simply means that I will have a lot of time in the future to keep enjoying the things I love to do. Read. Write. Study. Travel. Family time. This means I need to keep myself looking ahead for the opportunities that could arise, or they are running alongside me right now!

What are you looking forward to doing as you age?
What are you ill-prepared for?
Are there any “gotcha’s” you worry about the most?

Walking forward with open eyes, mind, and heart will keep you expecting something new over the horizon, or around the next bend in the road!

I read of a recent study (Japan?) that noted more folks stave off dementia if they consistently walk on uneven ground. I read between the lines and my interpretation of the vague results may be totally off, but consider this tidbit. We really don’t want our walk to be “smooth sailing” or on some proverbial “yellow brick road”. Life has constant uppers and downers. From sickness through death, relationship challenges, even the election cycle – nothing is ever constant!

My interpretation? You are better off if your road is not smoothly paved! Bumps, dips, and uneven steps keep you prepared better than a smooth path! Surprises are better anticipated and your ability to “go with the flow” helps you be better prepared for the next change!

This thought just came to me. Why do people go into “haunted houses” during the Halloween season? They WANT to be scared out of their wits? Why? They crave change! Exhilaration. Adrenalin Flow. Think about it. If you go through enough of the haunted house experiences you will become immune to the scare factor! I mean, how many times can a fake spider send you into paroxysms of fright that brings you closer to a heart attack than you have ever been to before?

Each visit to this house of horrors should create an immunity to the real house of horrors we may face someday in real life! Experience with haunted houses should help you be immune should someone whisper, “Let’s go to that haunted house again!”

We can dwell on the fearful and live a life afraid of every shadow of movement in the corners, or, we can scrunch up our fears and stand up to every frightful thing and overcome the paralyzing fear that produces failure!

Here’s my thought. Not all change is profitable for the moment, but preparing for the uneven road ahead keeps me better prepared to adapt to things as they change! Perhaps retailers understand this to a degree, but I know technology giants have grasped this fact! We need to adapt to changing conditions and keep on moving!

Jesus gave his Great Commission, and in several places, he tells the disciples they will carry the gospel to the entire world. (Matthew 28:19-20, Luke 24:47, Mark 13:10, Acts 1:8) Their focus was to begin at home base (Jerusalem) and extend outward until they finally reached those “afar off”. But they seemed to be stuck at home.

Then Saul came along threatening Christians at home, maiming, imprisoning and even killing these new followers. What happened? The church spread like wildfire away from home toward the rest of the known world. Just like Jesus told them to do! “Go! Teach all nations!”

We will age into our future. Shakey. Afraid of the surprises. Or, we will enter with our entire focus on the possibilities that await! It all depends on how you see the Life Ahead!