The Sanctuary of Divine Love
“PASSAGES: The Celtic tradition honors three passages in a woman’s life; Maiden, Mother, Crone. As crones we have integrated the tender aspects of the maiden, the many lessons of mothering and the rich experience of a life long lived. Still, all are part of the whole. Perhaps you are in a time of transition, between mother and crone, a cronette so to speak. See your future self, a beautiful face graced with history, a healthy, vibrant body and a clear sharp mind. Trust that this is the best time of life.” (from the Wisdom of the Crones deck by Melinda Field and Lani Phillips.)
I am in the crone aspect of my life. Six plus decades have I walked this lifetime. I feel nowhere near the end of it though I marvel that I have made it this far. I know others who haven’t. The longer I live, the more goodbyes I say, the more loved ones that move on to the next great adventure, the more precious my life becomes.
To embrace our crone is to stop resisting the aging process. Acceptance of where we are in life is a testimony of how we have lived and survived. Each gray or white hair is a highlight of how you overcame uncertainty, fear, loss, and emotional or physical pain. These hairs are badges of honor, not signs that we are too old and no longer desirable. Laugh lines show how happy we have been. They add character to our face through the joy we have experienced.
The aging process moves faster when we give up and cease to be excited about our life. An unused body and mind are like a house that no one lives in anymore. It begins to decay through lack of care, with out the presence of human energy, feeling it has lost its purpose for existing. Our bodies begin to deteriorate when we lose interest in life. We lose the energy to take care of them properly. Unable to get out and socialize, either through lack of transportation or lack of friends, our mind atrophies from loss of stimulating conversation.
Growing older is not for the faint of heart. The changes in our bodies and minds keep us wondering what the bleep is going on. Our attitude has a lot of influence on how we experience this part of our life. We can accept what is happening gracefully or we can fight it every step of the way until the end. I have chosen to accept my fate and age gracefully with much compassion for my elder self.
I am thankful that I have existed this long. I have lived through and survived so many incidents in my life. Faith and courage are what I gained. I have the knowledge that no matter what comes into my life, I can survive and go on to celebrate my life even more. Experience brings wisdom and mistakes bring knowledge you cannot receive from anything else. Oh, how I have learned from my mistakes and poor choices!
Now, happiness is my constant companion. It is a learned response as I continue to pursue this emotion. There is much joy to be found in any life if there is a focus of attention on it. If my focus is on depressing or saddening news in the world, that becomes the dominating force of the emotion I feel. Happiness eluded me for many years until I made a conscious choice to follow my bliss. Making that the intention of what I wanted to see and experience, changed how I view the world.
I plan on making the most of growing older and chasing after all that I can see myself doing. There is much more to life that I want to experience before I move on. Places to go, things to see and people to meet, all of this excites me. My inner child is at the wheel, under my adult supervision, of course. She excited to be remembered and included in this phase of life. When she’s happy, I’m happy and life is glorious once again.
With arms open wide, I fling myself whole-heartedly into growing older. I know the best is yet to come.