February 19th, 2007
Old Ideas Into New Thinking
We have been talking about our ways of thinking about aging. What does midlife mean to you? Is it a time of ongoing decline, or a time of renewal and expansion? Many of our thoughts are merely the conditioning of our life as we grew up. As we interact in the world our conditioning is reinforced by our habits of thought. If we are to change the habits of our thought around midlife, how might we renew and expand?
Initially we need to break out of our own self imposed thoughts as well as our conditioned thoughts. The new paradigm needs to be one that allows us to know that we are not caught up in the old way of thinking, but that we can be reaching out to new ways of thinking at all times. Can you list all the opinions, wives tales and expected ways that midlife has been presented to you all your life? Make a list right now of what you think; don’t censor or hesitate over this.
I will give you a few of my own that I have heard, or learned as an example:
1. weight gain in midlife
2. osteoporosis
3. can’t get a job
4. life is over when the kids leave
5. learning is impossible
Number your paper from one to ten, and make a list of your own.
What I am doing to take my old ideas and to transform them is to make a list of what I am conditioned to believe or have heard. I will research and or ask for the truth, and variations of the truth. Then I will research the proactive choices I can make to either prove the idea wrong or to alter the outdated or pessimistic expected outcome. For instance, is that true that life is over when the kids leave? What is the truth? What are the steps to take to positively impact all the negative aspects of this situation? (Isn’t it interesting that two mothers who love their children equally can dread or look forward to this time? It is all a matter of perception!) Did your list bring out any surprises for you?
I would love to know what is on your list!
Warm regards,
Lorraine
