Of all the self-fulfilling prophecies in our culture, the assumption that aging means decline and poor health is probably the deadliest. Marilyn Ferguson, The Aquarian Conspiracy, 1980Ever read something that makes you sit up and say -- oh wow - what about that?
The quote above is one of those things. I read it and my mind immediately sat up on alert. I mean, really, I'm aging and often think of it as 'resisting the inevitable'. Sometimes, I feel like Dylan Thomas is urging me to not go 'quietly into that gentle night'. I balk and fume. Resist and push against gravity's drag and time's pull.
And I never thought to wonder -- is the thought that aging means decline and poor health just a cultural assumption? An urban myth I've never challenged?
Yesterday, I met with a group of co-workers to establish a 'healthy lives' group at the shelter where I work. All of us want to lose weight, get fit, get in motion and do something to enliven our bodies and our lives. As we went around the table talking about 'our story', it struck me that we are all connected. All the same in all our differences.
We all want to belong.
And sometimes, belonging is what keeps us aware of our actions. Belonging is where we find our accountability factor.
Belonging, as Jeremy Rifkin suggests in the You Tube video below, is the first driver in building an empathic civilisation.
Yesterday, we came to the meeting because we all shared a collective desire. But our goal is much bigger than that. Our goal isn't to individually lose weight, get fit, get moving. Our goal is to work as a collective to support each other, to identify with each other, to connect so that together, our cumulative weight loss, which will also be translating into cumulative miles on a stationary bike could be used to raise funds for our United Way Campaign kick-off.
Yup. Each one of us feels a responsibility to contribute. And we want our contribution to benefit the larger community. So, we've decided to work together to create change by not measuring individual loss but by collectively using our weight loss, miles stepped to benefit our community.
It's just a small step.... but imagine if we all took small steps together. What kind of world could we create?
I'll be posting a badge shortly inviting people to support me in my quest to participate in this exciting initiative and to prove -- aging is just a state of mind that never gets old when I keep learning and growing and doing my best.
Stay tuned. More details to follow!
In the meantime, this You Tube video from the Royal Society of the Arts in England (RSA) is a fascinating animated telling of bestselling author, political adviser and social and ethical prophet Jeremy Rifkin's talk that "investigates the evolution of empathy and the profound ways that it has shaped our development and our society."
Enjoy!
And check out the other RSA-animate videos -- Dan Pink's -- Drive is fascinating!
4 comments:
Elgie,
given the massive-ness of time, in the context of billions ... or even just thousands - of years, our time here is a tiny moment
if we stay here 21 years or 101 years, it makes so little difference to this planet - our existence, like a flickering flame that starts and ends almost before it's begun
we can however burn brightly while we are here, we can 'not think in terms of millenia' but in terms of OUR TIME
we cannot determine the length of OUR TIME, but we can speak to and act on things that determine the quality of our time, and to some degree we can impact the length of our time
but .... we should not overlook the breadth of our time
breadth, in terms of how much we can do, how thin we can spread ourselves to touch so many with our message, our purpose and our passion for life
your time is not a state of mind, it is a reality that touches many, reaches many and has meaning for many
most of all, it has depth and meaning for you
burn bright
don't quit
the end will come one day, but no need to hurry it
but for all of us, we need to keep rushing through life so we can do as much as we can . . . and, if we are lucky, some of us will stay behind as our legacy; some word or work or deed that impacts someone or many - we'll leave that behind
smile!
Mark
I just love all the wonderful connections of one to another. The small thing does matter when it's multiplied many times over!
You have my support! Hugs.
Good luck, Louise.
I will turn 40 in ll days and it's kind of bothering me...maybe vanity, maybe something altogether different. I know part of my anxiety is realizing all I haven't done, haven't accomplished.
Your words are a blessing to me and many others...
i think we're all a bunch of kids.
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