We’ve all heard “this is the first day of the rest of your life.” True enough. It is also “the last day of your life so far.” And, of importance to those of us elders, it may well be “the best day of the rest of your life .”
As you pass the 75-year mark, most surprises are not likely to be good ones. Especially if they involve our own body or mind. We adjust, but in spite of protestations, we will never again be 30, no matter how well we eat or how much we exercise. At any time we may lose all or part of some facility we have taken for granted .
That’s inevitably depressing, especially in a culture that always looks forward to a “new, improved” future. The way we handle it is often to focus on nostalgic memories, or by being as obsessively short-sighted as possible centering on hobbies, friends, or family. “Carpe diem” comes to mean much more than simply seizing the day to make tomorrow better. It’s far more useful to seize the day to make the day better .
Peace of mind in a kind of meditative way is achieved by treating each moment and each day as the last. Leaving as little dangling and undone as possible every night when we go to sleep. Very little will be better handled tomorrow .
It would seem a sad outlook, but I found it astoundingly cheerful and comforting. Part of my deteriorating mentality, no doubt .
HuntingtonHarborThoughts 