Category Archives: Intention & Awareness

My Muses Have a Few Thoughts on Befriending Aging

Inner Wisdom & Intuition, Intention & Awareness, Muse Whispers

A Letter from Gratitude

Dear Jan,

Come walk with me a moment. You don’t have to carry anything today. I’ve got the wheelbarrow. Look. Here is one good breath. Here is a body that has carried you this far. Here are hands that still make, still reach, still receive. We are not counting what has changed. We are noticing what remains and what is quietly deepening.

This season isn’t asking you to prove anything. It’s inviting you to tend. Tend to what is still warm. Still alive. Still willing. Your life is not behind you. It is gathering itself. And I am right here, helping you notice.

Love,
Gratitude

A Letter from Detective Why Bother

Jan,

Let’s not sugarcoat this. Things are changing. Energy, pace, priorities… all of it. So the question isn’t “how do I keep up?” You already know that’s a losing game. The better question is: What’s actually worth your effort now? This is where you get selective. Intentional. Even a little ruthless. Not everything deserves tending. But what does? That’s where your life is. You’re not shrinking. You’re refining. And frankly…it’s about time.

Love,
Detective Why Bother

A Letter from Epiphany

Beloved Jan,

Come sit by the water with me. Do you see how the surface settles when nothing is disturbing it? This is what aging offers you, not less, but clearer. You no longer need to chase every ripple. You can wait for what is true to reveal itself. Tending, for you now, is not efforting. It is allowing. There is wisdom rising in you that cannot be rushed, only received. Let it come. I am here in the stillness with you.

Love,
Epiphany

A Letter from Steady Freddy

Hi Jan,

No need to hurry. I’ll walk with you. I know things feel different. Maybe a little slower. Maybe a little heavier some days. That’s okay. We’re not trying to get somewhere fast anymore. We’re building something that lasts. Small steps still count. Actually… they count more now. What if tending just meant: one small thing, done with care?

A cup of tea.
A page written
A walk taken.

You don’t have to do it all. Just keep going. I’ve got you.

Love, Steady Freddy

A Letter from Levity

Oh Jan…

What if we didn’t make this so serious? Yes, yes…aging, changing, tending…all very important. But also? You are still allowed to delight in ridiculous things. You are still allowed to laugh at yourself. To wear something a little unexpected. To dance badly in your kitchen. Lightness is not denial. It’s medicine. Let’s not forget to play with this season, too. Aging gracefully? Sure. But also…aging playfully. I’ll bring the flower crown.

With a wink, Levity

A Letter from Miss Direction

Jan,

I see what you’re doing. Trying to do this “aging gracefully” thing correctly. Trying to tend to the “right” things. Trying to meet this season with wisdom and poise and probably a nicely color-coded emotional system. Adorable. What if befriending included getting it wrong? What if tending didn’t always look like nurturing, but sometimes like wandering off, forgetting what you were doing, starting something new halfway through something else? What if this season of your life isn’t about becoming more together…but about becoming more yourself? Because let me tell you something, I specialize in the places where things don’t go as planned.

And those places? They’re not failures. They’re doorways you didn’t know you needed. So when your energy zigzags…when your focus drifts…when your plans unravel a little…

Come find me. I’ll be just off the path, collecting shiny, unexpected things, making meaning out of the mess. You don’t have to get older perfectly. You just have to stay in relationship with the life that’s unfolding. And sometimes? The most tender thing you can do is follow the detour.

Lovingly (and slightly sideways),
Miss Direction

A Letter from Uncle Quilliam Honkington

My Dear Jan,

If I may…There is a certain elegance to this stage of life that is often overlooked. Not the elegance of perfection, but of discernment. You are no longer obliged to entertain every expectation, nor to perform for every audience. You may choose.

Choose what to tend.
Choose what to release.
Choose what to savor.

There is dignity in this. And a quiet sort of power. Might I suggest, you are not “adjusting” to age…You are being initiated into it. And you are carrying yourself quite beautifully, I must say.

With admiration,
Uncle Quilliam Honkington

Kitchen Sink Enlightenment

Intention & Awareness, , , , , ,

I used to hate doing dishes. It was such a dreaded chore.  To be honest there are still some days where I am less than enthusiastic about this chore.  But then that is the problem you see.  I’ve learned that when I THINK of dish doing as a chore it’s NOT fun.  And I’m definitely for having fun.

So I got a bit curious,  “Could I actually learn to not just tolerate doing the dishes, but could I learn to love this daily ritual?

“Awe YES!!!  I believe I might be on to something!”

What if I reframed doing the daily dishes from a chore to a ritual…a sacred practice?  I was intrigued by this idea, which seemed pregnant with possibilities.  I mean, where and when did I learn to think of this daily routine as just a chore to tick off my list?  I could choose to think about doing the dishes differently.  I could invite a new experience. I could choose to show up with a smile instead of a frown.

It’s amazing what you can discover and experience at your kitchen sink.  Here are a couple of things I’ve happily stumbled upon.

I’ve frequently found myself slipping into that magical meditative “zoned-in-place” where creative ideas and other Aha’s percolate up into my consciousness.  Who would have guessed I’d find inspiration in dirty dishwater?

I’ve surprisingly found slowing down enough to actually wash the dishes rather than just popping them quickly and mindlessly in the dishwasher to be an all to rare blessing in today’s fast paced stressful environment.  Taking the time to slow down and be fully present to this delicious sensual experience, to mindfully notice the simple pleasure in a sink full of yummy suds and the intimate warmth of the water caressing my hands has fed my soul.

I’ve learned even after having experienced many peak experiences at my sink it is too easy to become complacent and fall back into old habitual ways of thinking.  All habits are hard to break. Thinking habits seem especially stubborn.  I could choose to get down on myself for having slipped, but that is definitely not fun, so here’s what I’ve chosen to do instead.

I first need to become aware of my funky monkey thinkin’…I’ve also sometimes heard this called stinkin’ thinkin’.  Becoming aware can be tricky, but it does get easier with practice.

I then ask myself an empowering question. Are we having fun yet?  Asking the question in this way helps me to keep it feeling light and smile at myself.  It helps me avoid the street marked Getting Down On Myself .

Finally, I recommit to choosing what I really want (i.e. to have fun & experience joy) by choosing a more exciting thought.   What have you discovered at your kitchen sink lately?