Stop Thinking of Yourself As "Old".

We often live a self-fulfilling prophesy. As we age, we start unconsciously to begin mimicking the other older people around us. And often, those older people unconsciously begin to mimic their aged or already dead parents or grandparents – they slow down, shuffle when they walk, become bent over and stop doing the activities they used to love. They become “old” before your eyes, and suddenly you find yourself following them, slowing your own rhythm and walking away from a more vigorous life.

Of course, our body does lose its resilience and energy as we age. But scientists are finding that our brain need not grow “old” as fast as our muscles and joints. We can continue to “think young”, try new things, find new experiences; and surprisingly, this helps our body to create a new life of its own as well.

As everyone should know by now, the basis of good health are diet and exercise. Just because we are aging, this does not require us to stop (or even slow down) our everyday need to eat right and exercise as much as we can.

To help us keep up with these two life-giving necessities of our own life, maybe we need to search out younger friends and groups of younger (or younger-thinking) people who will help us keep up a littler faster pace in our daily existence.

And we also need to keep our brain in tip-top shape as well: by reading the books we love, by participating in discussion groups and going to the theater, by finding friends who enjoy discussing the topics of the day, and yes, by discussing how we all can learn, through our body and our mind, to continue to “think young” even as we grow older.

The ancient statement, “You’re only as old as you feel”, is still true. As you look around your world, seek out those older folks who seem to stand out among the crowd because of their positive attitude and bright spirits. Get to know them and follow their example. There’s a good chance that through their own healthy diet and exercise – and healthy outlook on life – they have found what you are looking for.

They have stopped thinking of themselves as “old”. They are now thinking and working on squeezing every bit of joy out of every minute they have left.

What better way is there to pass the time you have left?