So it is almost my birthday again, 43 this time, and thought it would be nice (and perhaps slightly indulgent of me) to share a few bits that might make things easier for you (or not).

Age as a Gift and a Privilege

Firstly, age is so often seen as a cross to bear. We spend the first 18yrs thinking that being older is better, then the next 60 or so not wanting to get, be or feel much older. It's a weird part of our current culture, to value youth, not age and wisdom. Personally, I like the idea of thinking of age as levels, that way when you get to level 40 or 60, that sounds way more accomplished than just thinking you're getting old. Each day, each year we survive is a great gift, value it rather than lament it. It is a privilege to reach any age and to add a year on to your life is a success story denied to many every day.

Store Up - The Road is Long

We seem to be very good at squandering our capacities, time, energy and resources for all sorts of reasons. News Flash, just in case you didn't get the memo, the road is hard and may get harder at every turn.

One of the things that surprises me about our culture, is there is very little conventionally taught information about how to care for yourself, how to know yourself and how to develop yourself throughout your life. Why is there no early training for the difficulties of life, for the barren nature of retirement, when you are told you are no longer worthy to contribute to society so be quiet and go die. So many people when they get to certain stages in their lives, suddenly need to find their purpose, like it was some sacred gem that's been hiding. Really we are in a constant state of change and adaptation, our purpose can be whatever it is we choose it to be, without having to make some big drama of it. Be prepared for it to change, be willing and happy for it to change. You are not stuck on any one road, path or purpose for your life, with the exception of the road to death. 

So make little deposits to the bank of you every day, add value to your life every day, you never know what it is that you will need and when, as none of us know what is really coming except the end, and even then, when, where and how is a mystery.

Remember, whatever it is that you seek, you are that which you seek!

Invest in Yourself

Seems a really simple one. We expect our employers to invest in us, we expect our partners, friends, lovers all to invest time and energy into us, but how often do we make our own investments to our wealth and worth?

One of the great tools I have gained from Access Consciousness is the 10% account. Putting 10% of everything I earn, before bills, into an account to help build my intrinsic value. It may not be much, I can't retire on it yet, but it adds up and makes a huge difference over time. This can only be spent on things that add intrinsic value and wealth to your life. It's not a rainy day account or emergency account. It's you tithing to the bank of you.

I have said to clients for many years that doing a little something for themselves everyday, whatever feels good, is an investment into their health pension that has a payout much better than any private pension could hope for. We save up in expectation of needing more when we get older, but how many of you are planning for being old with health, style, grace, energy and enthusiasm for life? Not many I bet as this isn't our cultural thinking. Just that we will depreciate and get less capable. Not me boss, I'm investing time, energy and money now to ensure that my dotage is less about sleeping in an easy chair cause I'm too fucked to do anything else (unless it's after a great day of enjoying life to the full). I want to prepare my body to be as great as it can be.

My simple idea is, that only extended BAD habit will make you ill ion old age. Like any vehicle, if we regularly service, with quality parts and good fuel (food), and learn to drive the vehicle well (how reckless are you with this irreplaceable unique vehicle you've been gifted?), then we will be proudly still driving our vintage classic and looking cool long after many of the same year of manufacture are rusting to junk. This is the process of Integral Life Practice, doing little bits everyday to contribute the healthy living. Somehting for Body (diet and movement), Mind, Spirit and Shadow as the core, then work, relationships, parenting, creativity and many others as auxilary.

The Road Leads On - Don't look Back.

As a very simple question, without using words or language, show me where the past and the future exist? If you're just pointing with your fingers, then all you are showing me is the space around you now, if you have to explain that one direction is past and the other future, you are using words and language. 

Everything you have felt in the past is gone, unless you choose to repeat the energy of it now and even then it's not the same as then, only what you imagine then to have been like now, which will change depending on the day and how you are. Unless the thing is actually present, you're making it up, in the most creative and gifted way, but does it contribute to your life? If not why are you choosing it?

As Heraclitus said "You can't step into the same stream twice".

Your mind is amazing, can create more than you can conceive right now, use it wisely and spend your time not focussing on all the things that aren't right and haven't worked, but asking what is right, what could work and then get out and live it. It's the basis of good science, have a question, carry out an experiment to test it, review and redesign for better results. This is life ad infinitum. 

Spend your time look at what could be possible and taking the action to bring it into reality rather than wishing it all away and doing nothing to contribute to creating the reality you want, or worse going back over what you don't want, didn't like, hurt you, limits you. Do you really want to choose that? Ok, it's your life.

This is not to say that we gloss over trauma or bad stuff like it doesn't exist, that's just a form of denial or spiritual bypassing. We can acknowledge trauma, depression, anger or anything that is present. Just don't hang onto it or make your life about it, aim for the value you are adding to your life, even if that is about working through your limitations.

Make Every Day Your Best Yet!

Recently someone made a comment to me about how their wedding day was the best day of their lives. Sounds great doesn't it, who wouldn't want that?

Well me for a start and this is why. They were referring to a day that was 20 years ago, that is 7300 days ago. So 7300 times that life has not been as good as that moment. For me, that seems like a life wasted and focus that doesn't add to me making my life better each day. I'm really glad that their wedding day was so good, but fuck, to think that nothing had topped that in 20 years....

Me I'm aiming for my best day still to come, each day I want to plan, practice and make it so that better days than yesterday are always in the offing. Not that I'm denying the difficult or challenging days that happen, that's the weather on the road of life. But I want to take what I learn and gain about the journey and use that to create the best journey I can have, rather than looking back to wish I was 20 again or something else that has long passed and isn't inspiring my life to become better and better. If it is, great, if not, change the thought process.

Be Grateful

Every good thing, every bad thing, if you wake up the next day alive, be grateful. It means you get another go at the game.

Keep on seeing it that way and you get the essence of what Valhalla is like, whatever happens, when you wake up, you get to choose again how you will bring glory to your day and life. Choose wisely and enjoy the ride as much as you can.

Be the creators that you truly are

Be the inspiration that you truly are

Add value to your life and the lives of others for win win

Thanks for reading this far.