When you’re old and full of aches and pains, why do you keep pushing yourself to “Keep Going?”

This question is on the lips of many pensioners.

There is a theory that finding a meaning to life is man’s primary motivation in life and the reason to keep going.

The answers to the question:

First: the love for one’s loved ones to tie to.

Second: a talent to be used.

Third: Memories worth preserving plus to care for a loved one.

To be there for them, your presence is important.

This is the challenge of the meaning theory to weave these threads into a pattern of meaning.

The central theme of existentialism is:

To live is to suffer.

To survive is to find meaning in spite of the suffering.

If there is a purpose in life at all, there must be a purpose in suffering.

But nobody can tell another what this purpose is. Each must find out for themselves.

If the person succeeds in finding the meaning, they will continue to grow.

HE WHO HAS A “WHY” TO LIVE CAN BEAR ALMOST ANY “HOW”.

Even in the worst circumstances, the human freedom of the ability to choose one’s attitude toward those circumstances remains.

PEOPLE CAN RISE ABOVE THEIR OUTWARD FATE!

We have to awaken to the fact that we are RESPONSIBLE TO LIFE FOR SOMETHING, however grim the circumstances may be.

People can find meaning in creative work.

A passive life of enjoyment gives you fulfilment in art or nature.

But there is also purpose in a life barren of both creation and enjoyment, namely, a person’s attitude to his existence, an existence restricted and limited by external forces.

There also is meaning in suffering!

Hard to believe but true!

The way in which a person ACCEPTS their dire circumstances, and all the suffering it entails, the way they take up their cross, gives them an opportunity to add deeper meaning to their life.

This ACCEPTANCE is proof that man’s inner strength may raise him above his outward fate.

Life means taking responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfil the tasks necessary to fulfil it.

When a person finds themselves in a bad situation that can’t be changed, they know they are going to suffer, so they will have to accept their suffering as their task.

No one can relieve them of their suffering or suffer in their place.

Their unique opportunity lies in the way in which they bear their burden.

When you are facing an uncontrollable situation, you start to despair and think to yourself that you have nothing more to expect from life.

But you have to realise that life is still expecting something from you; something in the future is expected of you.

When you become conscious of the responsibility you bear toward a loved one who needs your caring presence, or to your unfinished work, you will never be able to throw away your life.

Because you now know the WHY for your existence and you will be able to bear any HOW.

THAT WHICH DOES NOT KILL ME, MAKES ME STRONGER!

You cannot lose hope and give up on life.

For no person knows what the future will bring.

Human life under any circumstances still has meaning!

The meaning of life differs from person to person, day to day, hour to hour.

What matters is NOT the meaning in general BUT the specific meaning of a person’s life at any given moment.

Every situation in life represents a challenge to man and presents a problem for him to solve.

Your meaning in life always CHANGES, but never ceases to be.

We discover our meaning in life in 3 different ways:

By creating a work or doing a deed, achievement and accomplishment.

By experiencing something or encountering someone.

By the attitude we take toward “unavoidable suffering”.

When we can’t change a situation, we are challenged to CHANGE OURSELVES, to change our thinking about the situation.

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO SAY “YES” TO LIFE IN SPITE OF PAIN, ILLNESS AND DEATH?

By accepting your circumstances completely.

You have to make the BEST of any given situation.

You can cope with suffering!

JUST AS LIFE REMAINS MEANINGFUL UNDER ANY CONDITIONS, SO TOO DOES THE VALUE OF EACH PERSON STAY WITH THEM, AND IT DOES SO BECAUSE IT IS BASED ON THE VALUES THAT HE OR SHE HAS REALISED IN THE PAST, AND ISN’T CONTINGENT ON THE USEFULNESS THAT THEY MAY OR MAY NOT RETAIN IN THE PRESENT.

TO SUM UP:

Is it possible to find meaning in old age?

Yes, it is.

Through helping others to cope by caring for a loved one for example.

Being there for them.Your presence is needed.

Plus:

Informing and entertaining others through blogs.

We’ve been to the Moon, now what?

The Moon never did become a holiday destination, or a stepping stone to the Universe beyond.

Just eight years after Kennedy”s speech, Apollo launched carrying Armstrong and Aldrin into history. Collins manned the spaceship.

Now, entrepreneur Elon Musk is preparing for a Mars landing!

But we have NOT returned to the Moon in 50 years and any Mars project planner should consider to revisit it first.

Travel between Mars and Earth requires them to be suitably positioned in their orbits.

This would mean the Mars astronauts would have to stay on Mars for 6 months before a return trip could begin.

Could the spacemen sustain themselves for half a year? No one knows.

The longest that humans have remained on the lunar surface is 75 hours!

It seems you would have to use the Moon as a jumping off point.

So, we have never returned to the Moon and it would be a must to return if Mars is to be realised.

If we are going to put a footprint on Mars we need to address 3 challenges:

Rockets, Restlessness and Radiation.

Rockets: Going to Mars will be very expensive–100 to 500 billion dollars!

To keep costs down you would need to build reusable rockets.

Restlessness: You would need to put astronauts in isolation for 6 months to see how they would react.

But Musk said he would keep people busy doing tasks.

Radiation: The astronauts and the spaceship would be exposed to solar radiation.

Some say extra spaceship shielding is the answer but this increases weight so fuel consumption goes up and so do costs.

The best solution may be to get to Mars faster! So to minimise radiation exposure–this would mean faster rockets.

Lets return to Elon Musk and his Space X technology company which has the goal of reducing space transportation costs to enable the colonisation of Mars.

Elon Musk is a 48 year old billionaire who wants to reduce the risk of human extinction through over population and climate change by establishing a human colony on Mars by 2050!

By 2022, Musk wants to reach Mars and place power and life support infrastructure for future manned flights. He believes there is water under Mars’ South Pole.

The next step would be a manned mission by 2024.

The plan is to send two cargo ships alongside two crew ships taking the first people to Mars.

The people would set up a propellent plant to make fuel for a return trip.

They also would use solar powered hydroponics to grow food without soil.

Musk wants to visit his Mars colony in his lifetime to check on the project.

He said with this project people will die but ultimately it will be made safe and comfortable!

Is this all a Pipe Dream of Musk’s?

TIME WILL TELL!

Its been 50 years since I watched amazed at the moon landing”s grainy TV pictures on July, 20th, 1969.

Big things were happening, not only the moon landing, but I was leaving in 2 days for England to get married to my first wife.

By 1969 there had been 8 years of Space Race with the Russians. The Apollo project was launched in 1961 by President Kennedy.

If you were within 3 miles of the launch pad your entire body would have shook!

It took millions of parts to build the Saturn rocket. 400,00 people worked on it from 2500 companies, costing 30 billion dollars.

I remember when it was uttered by Armstrong, “One small step for man, one giant step for mankind.”

People ask, why did we go to the moon?

We probably gained some technological  knowledge.

The Russians were beating us in the Space Race and we had to prove our superiority.

Can you imagine, 3 men of identical stature, all were 5ft. 11 inches tall and weighed about 160 pounds, squeezing themselves inside the command Module onto couches built to fit them, facing a large instrument panel.

I don’t know whether we will ever go where no one has gone before again. There’s no political will and the money is required elsewhere.

But the Chinese have money to splurge on a trip maybe to Mars, to gain international political prestige.

Now, the reason this post is titled with a question mark is:

I ran into a guy, named Charlie, at a University of the Third Age meeting who is convinced the moon landing was faked!

He said, the Soviets had been first to get satellites into space and live animals into space and back, and a man and woman into space–so the USA had to do something to counter this.

The reasons he believes the moon landing was a hoax are:

None of the photos from the moon shows any stars in the sky.

This can be explained by the fact that the camera settings weren’t adjusted to capture them.

How come the landing vehicle’s thrusters didn’t create a large hole on landing?

This can be explained by the fact that the pressure was too low to blast a hole.

How come the flag was waving when there’s no wind on the moon?

The flag appears to be waving because when it was placed there the inertia from when they let go of it kept it moving.

These explanations didn’t convince Charlie. He still believes the government faked the landing on a large mock-up of the lunar surface in the Nevada desert.

When the Apollo craft was supposed to return to Earth, the astronauts got into a space pod and were transported over the ocean and pushed out.

So, according to Charlie, NASA was technically incapable of reaching the moon, but the race with the Russians forced them to fake it. Also, the government needed a distraction from the unpopular Vietnam War.

I left Charlie, the conspiracy nut, shaking my head.

I still think the mission was a remarkable technical feat and I am proud that we made it first to the moon.

MINDFULNESS

I hope to acquire the capacity to be mindful of the present moment and to Accept “What Is” plus ridding myself of unhelpful habits that cause needless suffering.

Your thoughts are chaotic, so what to do?

To get the mind to settle you need to focus on an ANCHOR.

A place to put your attention as the mind settles itself.

We use the breath as an anchor.

Your breath is always present.

Put your attention on the rhythms of your breathing-inhale, exhale, in and out, this brings calmness to the body and focuses our Awareness.

Your mind will probably wander but keep going anyway.

Focus on your breath for at least 5 minutes at the start.

You will notice a pleasant sensation that relaxed breathing brings.

Watching and attending to your breath is a basic mindfulness practice.

Why do we always try to AVOID life’s difficulties?

We don’t want to confront our fears so we evade them!

The motivation to avoid conflicts and difficulties drives us right into SUFFERING!

Resistance to bad situations just increases our suffering.

Only the COMPLETE ACCEPTANCE of a bad situation leads to the end of suffering.

What is the difference between pain and suffering?

Because we live in a physical body pain is inevitable.

Suffering is NOT the same as pain.

Suffering is the mental and emotional RESPONSE to pain.

Suffering occurs when we RESIST the way things are.

To end suffering you must ACCEPT “What Is”.

DISSECTING MINDFULNESS

The technique of Meditation is called INSIGHT and it is a set of mental activities aimed at experiencing a state of uninterrupted mindfulness.

It is the conscious awareness of the Present Moment.

What is a state of AWARENESS?

When you first become aware of something, there is a fleeting instant of Pure Awareness just BEFORE you identify the something, just before you objectify it.

This moment of Pure Awareness is passed over, but the purpose of Meditation is to train us to prolong that moment of Awareness.

When it is prolonged it changes your entire view of your world.

What is Mirror Thought?

It is thought that reflects only what is presently happening in exactly the way it is happening.

It is NON-JUDGMENTAL OBSERVATION.

Whatever experience we may be having, mindfulness just ACCEPTS it.

It is simply another of life’s occurrences—what is there—is there!

Mindfulness is Impartial Watchfulness.

It treats all experiences equally.

Nothing is suppressed and nothing is repressed.

Mindfulness is Present Moment awareness.

It takes place in the Here and Now.

It is the observance of what is happening NOW.

To sum up:

Fully developed mindfulness is a state of total non-attachment.

If we can maintain this state we can achieve liberation from our weaknesses.

Meditation holds mental hindrances at bay.

THE RESULT IS A MIND THAT IS COMPLETELY UNDISTURBED BY THE UPS AND DOWNS OF LIFE.

And to get this result you need to ACCEPT the ups and downs.

Resolve to do this and commit to it completely.

Ease physical discomfort by easing mental suffering.

To ease mental suffering pay attention to you aches and pains and to your mental stress by ACCEPTANCE of your life as it is at the moment.

The three components of physical discomfort:

The unpleasant sensation itself, pain, aching muscles, etc.

Your emotional reaction to the discomfort, fear frustration, irritation, etc.

The thoughts that are related to the first two components.

Stress stories you tell yourself, “This pain will never cease!”

Mindfulness helps you to respond skilfully to those emotions.

There are two ways to respond with aversion and fear or with acceptance.

When you resist and tell the discomfort to go away you increase your mental suffering.

The alternative is to respond with ACCEPTANCE.

Nothing in life is to be feared only to be understood and accepted.

So what to do?

Understand and accept whats going on in your mind and gently acknowledge that irritation is present and then incline you mind toward compassion for yourself.

ACCEPT AND ADAPT.

One thought or moral to be drawn from the novel, “1984” is:

“Don’t let it happen. It depends on YOU!”

In today’s world is truth mutilated, language distorted, power abused and surveillance rampant?

YES, is the answer.

Remember Big Brother? It was a popular TV reality show that realized that even though people claimed to be worried about too much surveillance or control, a large amount of people would happily volunteer for it.

The phrase: “The War on Terror”, brought many restrictions on travel and movement, this reminds us of “1984” “Where every restriction is justified because there is a war on.”

Now the tyrant Putin has a watch word which is Effectiveness, which he describes as “Managed Democracy”. This mirrors “1984” but with subtle differences such as “effective control NOT total control.”

But Putin has brought back some “1984” features such as: Leader-Worship, Martial parades, mass arrests, show trials, language distortion and fake news.

Fake news is a distortion of Real News that is NOT to an authoritarian’s liking.

Fragrant lies become “alternative facts.”

21^stCentury authoritarians don’t force people to believe Big Lies such as Black is White or War is Peace, instead they rely on Medium Lies which encourages their followers to engage with alternative reality such as fake news.

George Orwell wrote “1984” as a warning about the future of the world. The reality in the novel was unthinkable in 1948.

Now, our world has come to look similar to Orwell’s fictional one.

How similar? Well, take surveillance for instance.

In the USA and UK CCTV cameras are all over.

China wants to have 600 million cameras by next year.

Another similarity is the state of Perpetual War, like in “1984.”

It seems there is always some war or disturbance going on somewhere in the world.

We are continually fighting the War on Terror and it seems like it will go on indefinitely.

So Perpetual War never comes to an end BUT it seems to unite nations.

Take Newspeak—in “1984” it is a language where words are cut and shortened and then put together to create new words.

The intention is to get rid of words that allow people to think about rebelling against authority. Ex.—“Bad” would be changed to “ungood.”

How about Fake News?

Today digital social media is full of fake news or alternative facts.

WHAT’S REAL AND WHAT’S MADE UP?

Now, the scenes recently in Hong Kong are a scary reminder of “1984.”

Police beating back protesters, who are protesting China’s plans to extradite Hong Kong citizens to mainland China.

Hong Kong remembers Tiananmen Square when the state massacred the protesters who were against China’s Communist government.

In China remembering what they choose to ERASE from history is forbidden and punishable.

The Chinese President is now President for LIFE! That’s scary in itself!

China is using today’s high-tech tools, mass video surveillance, artificial intelligence and facial recognition to enforce the Party’s rules.

China wants to inflict mass amnesia on its people.

Remember “1984”?

“Who controls the past, controls the future.

Who controls the present, controls the past.”

The communists have taken the freedom out of the Internet.

They intimidate dissident bloggers and censor providers.

They have introduced facial recognition to impose conformity on its citizens.

At railroad stations entry is only allowed to people once their faces have been scanned and checked against a police database.

Now, China is trying to export its Surveillance and AI tech all over the world.

Would this be used as a way to SPY?

Hong Kong’s freedoms currently allow it to fight back by protesting and in ways that other parts of China can’t. But for how long?

China’s state control is increasing day by day.

Isn’t it ironic that someone like Orwell, who lived and died in another time, had the insight to identify the evils of totalitarianism and warn us.

But has the world unlearned the painful lessons concerning the fragility of truth in the face of power?

I hope not.

What is Mindfulness?

It’s being attentive to one’s experience as it unfolds in the Present Moment.

Being aware of the present and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts and body sensations.

Mindfulness helps us REWIRE our thinking and find calm in a frenzied world.

It’s learning to develop your mind so you can stop the need to control reality and also to accept reality as it is in this very moment.

What about the Mind?

Our minds have been said to be made up of consciousness, thought, memory, emotion, reasoning and imagination.

We tend to think of our minds at the center of our being.

The mind is seen as the basis of WHO WE ARE.

What is the problem with the Mind?

Our minds tend to gravitate to the Past or the Future and tend to avoid the Present, which is the only life we have.

In a typical day how much of you is really there?

Your daily routine is made up of habits which free up our minds to do other things.

We are mindless of the Present most of the time causing us much suffering.

So, we need to Practice Mindfulness—WHY?

Because we need to CULTIVATE a wholesome mind that will produce thoughts that will make us feel good.

We don’t need to live at the mercy of a wild, untamed mind!

Our minds are malleable and can be reshaped in ways we choose.

What are the benefits of Mindfulness?

It helps to KNOW YOURSELF better.

It helps you see how your mind operates.

It helps us deal with difficult situations—some that we can’t control of improve.

It shows us that by accepting WHAT IS lessens suffering.

It can help us ACCEPT our mortality and prepare us for the moment of death.

Reflecting on our death actually liberates us so we can live and enjoy the PRESENT.

What is Awareness?

It is paying attention to what is occurring within ourselves as it is happening in the present moment.

Is Mindfulness SECULAR?

Yes. Mindfulness is a non-sectarian practice that has to do with how we relate to our beliefs.

How do we live our lives?

We live in a SEMI-CONSCIOUS state, thinking about the future or reviewing the past.

You go through life on AUTOPILOT!

When you practice Mindfulness you show up for your own EXISTENCE—THE PRESENT.

What does Mindfulness NOT do?

It is unable to stave off a situation that cannot be changed.

But you can alleviate your suffering by ACCEPTANCE of the situation.

It also cannot stave off the demise of our bodies, each of us will die.

One of the most important lessons of Mindfulness is to reveal to us that life is ephemeral and denying this only causes suffering and unhappiness.

But by ACCEPTING the impermanence of life we are liberated to enjoy our PRESENT.

Loss:

In the end, we will be separated from everything we have ever held dear.

We have to say goodbye to loved ones, to possessions, to our own dreams and hopes.

Mindfulness teaches us to prepare for loss and to ACCEPT it so we can live what life we have left fully.

You can’t hold onto things, if you try, you only SUFFER.

Mindfulness allows us to see this TRUTH and live in contentment.

This ends the first instalment of my Mindfulness studies.

I now know I have much to learn!

I am studying Mindfulness. So I thought I’d go to a Meditation class to supplement my studies.

It was a great experience. I was one of 15 people, men and women, sitting in a semi-circle.

There were carpets and cushions in front of each chair, just in case you wanted to sit in the lotus position. The only one who sat in the lotus position was the chairman of the class.

We were instructed to remove our shoes so we could feel the floor with our feet.

We took some deep breaths and closed our eyes. We sat up straight and put our hands on our knees.

The chairman rang a bell and we started to meditate. The majority of the 15 minute meditation was going to be silent.

But to start off the chairman did some chanting, it got softer and softer until we were in silence.

I said to myself, “Keep calm and peaceful.”

As the minutes passed I felt like I was floating. I was almost in a thought free state when the bell rang to end the session.

It was really relaxing. I felt very loose in my body when I opened my eyes.

Then we had a session and discussion on generating compassion for ourselves and others.

The chairman told us, compassion is a sense of shared suffering combined with the desire to alleviate or reduce our suffering or of another.

We were told, when you look at the other members of the class, who are strangers because this was the first meeting, tell yourself:

“Just like me, this person is seeking happiness in their life.”

“Just like me, this person is trying to avoid or reduce the suffering in their life.”

“Just like me, this person has known sadness and despair in their life.”

“Just like me, this person is seeking to fill their needs.”

This exercise is to recognize what you have in common with others instead of always focusing on differences.

Then ask yourself what could you do to ease their suffering, even in a small way.

Give them a smile or a hug, or a kind word, or maybe just talking about a problem they have.

We also talked about, No-Fixed Self. This is about your identity, we identify with our family, our jobs, our hobbies, whatever.

But we are a changing process.

All our “identities” are “ours” for a short period of time, then they change, or we lose them, or they die.

We ended with another meditation session. When the bell rang and we left, I felt very relaxed.

I got a taste of meditation.

So now, I can incorporate what I’ve learned into my Mindfulness studies.

Coping with the Human Condition.

Thoughts of a carer on handling difficult times:

When you live with a bad situation that can’t be controlled or improved, it’s like your life has been turned UPSIDE DOWN!

You can’t force things to get better, but you can heal your mind.

None of us can escape disappointment and sorrow in life.

They’re part of the Human Condition, largely because we don’t control a lot of what happens to us.

We have to ACCEPT whatever life is serving up at the moment.

When you live in a bad situation, all your plans get UPENDED, leaving us with a life UPSIDE DOWN!

When we become aware of the mental and emotional challenges that accompany a bad situation, it becomes easier to ADJUST and ACCEPT our new lifes.

Recipe for Peace of Mind:

One dose of stark reality—our lives and the people in them, are uncertain and unpredictable and do NOT always conform to what we want.

ACCEPTING this is the first step toward making peace with our circumstances.

One dose of practical skills—learning mindfulness.

One dose Humour—good medicine for the heart and mind.

Our inner freedom, freedom from suffering, is limitless regardless of our external circumstances

There are two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it!

The Want Monster whispers: If only you could get your health back, everything would be rosy.

I then realize that this is a delusion, if my health was restored, my life would STILL have problems.

Complaining is a recipe for suffering, it centers around a desire to control what’s happening to us.

A stark reality is that we have limited or NO control how things will unfold in any given moment.

It’s how we RESPOND to a bad situation that makes us miserable or content. If we resist and try to change it, we suffer!

To get peace we have to ACCEPT AND ADAPT.

A Basic Mindfulness Practice:

Take three or four deep conscious breaths—the sensation of the breath is a good anchor, because it takes place in the Present Moment.

The Three Components of Physical Discomfort:

The unpleasant sensation, pain, aching nerves and muscles, etc.

You emotional reaction to that discomfort, fear, irritation, anger.

Stressful thoughts related to the first two.

If you RESIST stressful thoughts and emotions you create suffering for yourself.

But if you RESPOND with ACCEPTANCE your suffering is eased.

It helps to remember that when we see cheerful people, we’re only seeing their public faces. We don’t know what their inner life is like.

They are probably stressful just like us.

We are all subject to illness, injury, aging, and separation from loved ones.

No one gets a pass on this.

Your carer is suffering right along with you.

Their life is also turned UPSIDE DOWN!

One reality of the Human Condition is:

IMPERMANENCE. Everything is in flux from moment to moment, including our physical and mental states.

Uncertainty is a fact of life.

The most precious gift we can offer anyone is our PRESENCE!

Between the carer and the caree many of the difficulties we face overlap.

We’re both isolated socially, we don’t travel much anymore and we both face uncertainty about the future.

The worst loneliness is to NOT be comfortable with yourself.

Freedom is instantaneous the moment we accept the way things are.

This is very difficult at the start!

The wisest response to bad situations that are beyond our control, circumstances we cannot change, is:

NONCONTENTION—which is NO struggling or fighting the situation.

Life is suffering. All of us can expect to encounter: birth, aging, illness, death, sorrow, pain, grief, getting what we don’t want and losing what we have.

What all these items have in common is that none of them are pleasant experiences; they are mentally painful or physically painful or BOTH!

Relentless effort to escape what we cannot escape and to change what we cannot change, this leads us to be miserable.

The good news is that we CAN reach the end of suffering in the mind, even while still suffering in body.

There are 3 experiences that are common to the life of every human being:

Suffering

Impermanence

No-Fixed -Self

With impermanence comes uncertainty and unpredictability.

BUT, we crave the opposite—security and assurance.

The fact that every aspect of our life is uncertain, unpredictable and in constant flux—we have to look after each moment, cherishing what we still can do, aware that everything could change in an instant.

What am I? I am a flow-through of matter, energy and information.

Descartes said, “I think, therefore I am.”

The NO SELF statement—“I think, but I am NOT my thoughts.”

NO SELF, NO PROBLEM!

The core of Buddha’s teachings:

Our lives are full of suffering so there are practices that can lead to the end of that mental suffering.

The 4 Sublime States:

Kindness; treating ourselves and others with kindness.

Compassion; reaching out to help yourself and others.

Empathetic Joy; feeling joyful when others are happy.

Equanimity; being at peace no matter what our circumstances.

Empathetic Joy is central to coming to terms with the life I can no longer lead.

You need the ability to share others’ joy, otherwise you will be steeped in ENVY!

Life’s limitations apply to carers as well as the ill, because they also have to forgo activities.

At first, feeling joyful just because others were happy was a SHEER ACT OF WILL. But if you stick with the practice, slowly the fake joy turns into genuine joy.

Equanimity is mental calmness especially in difficult situations.

The ill face each day not knowing which symptoms will hit us hard on a particular day.

The ill and their carers don’t know how they will react to the bad situation they are in from day to day.

IT’S DIFFICULT TO STAY CALM IN THESE CIRCUMSTANCES!

Letting Go involves the peaceful ACCEPTANCE of the unexpected and unwanted situations that arise in our lives.

YOUR SUFFERING ARISES FROM YOUR INTENSE DESIRE FOR CERTAINTY AND PREDICTABILITY.

If you could Let Go of the worry just a little because you have NO control over the bad situation anyway.

If you could Let Go completely, you would have peace and freedom and your struggles would come to an end.

THE PRESENT MOMENT IS A REFUGE.

Listening to your breath, in and out, this anchors you in the Present Moment.

The past is history. The future is a mystery. The Present is a gift.

WISE ACTION is action that leads to the cessation of suffering.

WISE INACTION can be thought of as NOT engaging in actions that make us feel bad.

Sometimes people are under so much stress that they can’t meditate. What to do?

DO NOTHING!

Just sit and do nothing for 5 or 10 minutes.

When I’m doing nothing I feel calm and receptive.

This practice is relaxing, restorative and feels good.

Carers should share with friends and family how hard it is for them at times to provide care.

There will be days when you’re NOT up to the task.

So practice Patient Endurance, we face hardship without giving up.

Even at home, care givers may be isolated from their loved one.

The ill loved one fines it hard to visit with the carer.

The carer has great frustration at not being able to make their spouse better.

Living with illness and care giving is a work in progress.

Some days you cry out: I wish things were different—but the situation is what it is!

TAKE SOLACE IN THE FACT THAT YOU ARE NOT ALONE; DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES ARE PRESENT IN THE LIVES OF ALL BEINGS.

HAVING BEEN BORN, WE ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE, ILLNESS AND DEATH.

IT HAPPENS DIFFERENTLY FOR EACH PERSON.

To sum up: When facing difficult times:

Let It Go

Let It Be

Accept It

Then you will have PEACE OF MIND.

Time is of the Essence–To an Oldie everything is about TIME.

They know that each of our lifetimes are limited.

The young think they have all the time in the world.

The Oldies realise their limited time horizon (think of the sun setting) which exposes the fundamental truth: Life is Short.

I’ve found the speed at which life passes is scary when viewed from the end.

So, what to do? Take advantage of every day and enjoy it. Seize the Day!

The Oldie understands that each day is one you will never get back, so why not make the most of it?

The Oldie knows Happiness is a Choice.

You can’t control all the things that happen in your life, but you can control your reaction to them.

The Oldie is an expert in maintaining a balance between accepting loss and bad situations and keeping an awareness of life’s pleasures.

Time spent worrying is Time Wasted. So Stop Worrying!

When you’re 70 or 80 you don’t have 50 more years to live, that’s the rub, the Oldie has limited time.

Feeling grateful comes out of that realisation.

Every morning Oldies say:

“Yes, I’m alive!”

And at night they say:

“Thanks for the day.”

Sometimes Oldies indulge in distorted thinking when times are bad.

We shouldn’t be surprised that the mind is so adept at distorted thinking.

Your mind is a shrieking, gibbering madhouse, BUT that’s NO problem.

This perspective enables you to hold cognitive distortions more lightly.

At times your mind is so unruly, so unreasonable. No wonder your thinking gets distorted.

But you can counter these distortions.

Example: “My legs are weak, I can’t do much.”

Counter that with:

“Given my weak legs, it’s amazing that I can get through each day.

I can drive and walk even with weak legs!”

In conclusion: Live your life whether you are young or old as if life is short, which it is!

Make a choice to be happy in the face of difficulties.

Worry is a waste of your lifetime.

Enjoy daily pleasures.

The Oldies tell us that everything comes to an END sooner or later, so enjoy life while you have it!

A few thoughts on ageing fearlessly:

Our culture fears old age. Why? Because we “think” too much!

Assuming we are lucky enough to live into old age, we fear what that entails.

Will it be physically and emotionally painful?

Aging is a PROCESS and it’s much better than you think.

You can do as you please and enjoy whatever!

You don’t care what others think.

You don’t need their approval.

Now granted, as you age it brings limitations.

You might not walk very well.

If you go places that require walking, you might need a cane. Get help where ever you can.

But you still have your mind and you can do things with it.

View aging as a QUEST, an ADVENTURE.

The adventure involves new opportunities and the development of new interests.

When you age you must take care of your health.

If you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything.

Don’t worry about dying, it’s a waste of time.

Religious people get comfort in thinking there is an afterlife.

But I found the same comfortableness with life’s end among oldies who were non-believers.

Some oldies believe NATURE is GOD.

But to most non-believers life is death and death is life. When you die, you die.

I don’t think about it much now.

I’m going on 81 so I do as much as I can to enjoy what’s left.

I’ve always been interested in science and philosophy, and the more I learned the less religious I became.

Here’s a view from one oldie:

“I think I have to accept growing older and someday dying. It makes life easier.

If you can be realistic about things it’s helpful.

Keep learning and being interested in the world around you, it stimulates the mind.

Stay connected, don’t be isolated socially, engage through learning opportunities and friendships.

The ultimate lesson about aging is “don’t fight it”..

Accept and adapt!

When I wake up in the morning, I sing:

“Oh, what a beautiful morning.

Oh, what a beautiful day.

I’ve got a beautiful feeling.

Everything’s going my way.”