I say this all the time...”Turns out my parents were right about time moving faster when you’re older.” Like Sarah, I’ve found my early foray into my 40s to be full and satisfying; like you speak of, I think a big part of that is a stripping back to what matters when there is a sense of “there won’t always be more time”. It’s such a balance of living in the brilliant enoughness of now and respecting that this life is finite.
And ps I’m excited to dive into the friendship podcast. Post-2020, I’ve noticed the shift in who is still in my life, who fell away, who do I want in my life (current, former, new).
"It’s such a balance of living in the brilliant enoughness of now and respecting that this life is finite." Dang, such a great quote right there! I'm feeling compelled to create mechanisms in my life that help me to stop at assess at regular intervals. Make sure I'm living for the right things. I'm concerned I'll fall back into old habits... maybe some daily meditation, quiet time, walking. Do you find yourself needing to stop and assess or is the sense of urgency enough?
I definitely need to come back to it again and again. Which I think is okay...to be in intention and not letting the good pass by because it’s habit. Time in the morning helps me to do that - to get quiet, meditate, reflect on the day to come and if it’s a reflection of what I want or how I can bring some of what matters to how I approach it.
I love being in my 40s. I've embraced the freedom that comes with age and not being as worried about what others think. But oh I feel this urgency. What legacy am I leaving? What impact am I having? Who will remember me when I'm gone?
I really started to feel this after Rachel Held Evans died, and I realized that time is so much shorter than we want to believe. And I saw this wealth of work that she had left behind for her young children to remember her by and realized that I needed to keep writing it all down for my kids.
I spent some more time thinking about it today while I walked the beach. Every time I leave my usual life and routines I feel called to cut back and seek more simplicity in my life. I feel that if I live in alignment with my values that the ripples will move in the right direction. Focusing on raising great kids is a big one. It's as though, as I get older, I feel less ambitious. I don't work as hard to make things happen. I plan seeds and if they are meant to grow into something more, they will...
Finally, I remember Dr. James Orbinski once saying at a speech at my university something along the lines of "ask the question, live out the answers." I just want to make sure I'm living on purpose, as much as possible.
I'm really trying to evaluate my relationship with social media. I'm currently trying to decide if IG is worth it. I've significantly stepped back from FB. My biggest concern is "how do I get my writing in front of people if I'm not on social?"
But I agree with the planting of seeds. I want my kids to grow to be good people. I love the motto "Live a great story." Not an Instagramable story. A great story worth passing down to the next generation. That's what I'm trying to focus on now.
I know that battle all too well. Substack is helping, with its internal network of referrals and readers. And social media is so unreliable! I like to think the "right" readers find us over time.
Time is so short isn’t it? But I think that after the grief of realizing we won’t live forever, embracing the constraint of time can end up being so exciting. ❤️❤️ xo
It is. And I think that's the phase I can sense I'm entering - that I'm still looking back and also aware of how that constraint of time can fuel me moving forward.
I hope you had a lovely Birthday
Thank you! I was absolutely wonderful.
I say this all the time...”Turns out my parents were right about time moving faster when you’re older.” Like Sarah, I’ve found my early foray into my 40s to be full and satisfying; like you speak of, I think a big part of that is a stripping back to what matters when there is a sense of “there won’t always be more time”. It’s such a balance of living in the brilliant enoughness of now and respecting that this life is finite.
And ps I’m excited to dive into the friendship podcast. Post-2020, I’ve noticed the shift in who is still in my life, who fell away, who do I want in my life (current, former, new).
"It’s such a balance of living in the brilliant enoughness of now and respecting that this life is finite." Dang, such a great quote right there! I'm feeling compelled to create mechanisms in my life that help me to stop at assess at regular intervals. Make sure I'm living for the right things. I'm concerned I'll fall back into old habits... maybe some daily meditation, quiet time, walking. Do you find yourself needing to stop and assess or is the sense of urgency enough?
I definitely need to come back to it again and again. Which I think is okay...to be in intention and not letting the good pass by because it’s habit. Time in the morning helps me to do that - to get quiet, meditate, reflect on the day to come and if it’s a reflection of what I want or how I can bring some of what matters to how I approach it.
I love being in my 40s. I've embraced the freedom that comes with age and not being as worried about what others think. But oh I feel this urgency. What legacy am I leaving? What impact am I having? Who will remember me when I'm gone?
I really started to feel this after Rachel Held Evans died, and I realized that time is so much shorter than we want to believe. And I saw this wealth of work that she had left behind for her young children to remember her by and realized that I needed to keep writing it all down for my kids.
Good and thought provoking piece for today :-)
I spent some more time thinking about it today while I walked the beach. Every time I leave my usual life and routines I feel called to cut back and seek more simplicity in my life. I feel that if I live in alignment with my values that the ripples will move in the right direction. Focusing on raising great kids is a big one. It's as though, as I get older, I feel less ambitious. I don't work as hard to make things happen. I plan seeds and if they are meant to grow into something more, they will...
Finally, I remember Dr. James Orbinski once saying at a speech at my university something along the lines of "ask the question, live out the answers." I just want to make sure I'm living on purpose, as much as possible.
I'm really trying to evaluate my relationship with social media. I'm currently trying to decide if IG is worth it. I've significantly stepped back from FB. My biggest concern is "how do I get my writing in front of people if I'm not on social?"
But I agree with the planting of seeds. I want my kids to grow to be good people. I love the motto "Live a great story." Not an Instagramable story. A great story worth passing down to the next generation. That's what I'm trying to focus on now.
I know that battle all too well. Substack is helping, with its internal network of referrals and readers. And social media is so unreliable! I like to think the "right" readers find us over time.
Time is so short isn’t it? But I think that after the grief of realizing we won’t live forever, embracing the constraint of time can end up being so exciting. ❤️❤️ xo
It is. And I think that's the phase I can sense I'm entering - that I'm still looking back and also aware of how that constraint of time can fuel me moving forward.