Aging: The Master Teacher

I’ve come to see so much clearer that I am ageless… indeed I am also timeless.  The “I” of me is the presence of divinity within me.  This means that who I am at my core is divine.  It is easy for me to see God (divinity) as both ageless and timeless, but applying the same words to me seems more difficult.    In my younger years I could only conceive of myself as tied to time and consequently controlled by time.  When I was 15 I couldn’t wait to be 16; when I was 20 I couldn’t wait to be...

In this time of recuperation ( I am now six months into various rehab modalities from the immobility caused by Guillian  Barre Syndrome),  I find myself rereading books that were previously meaningful for me.  I’m currently rereading Henri Nouwen’s book Here and Now: Living in the Spirit.  In his chapter on conversion he introduces the concept of “reverse mission.”  Reverse mission came to him when he was working with the poor in Lima, Peru.  He came to realize that is was indeed these people, these poverty stricken people, who had so much to teach their wealthy neighbors to the north…the...

How often do I ask myself, "What am I doing?"  The question carries both honesty, a true desire to do my best in caregiving, and no small level of vanity as in "Perhaps I’m better than to do this!" Caregiving requires that I gently set my ego aside and concentrate on my care receiver’s needs.  I know I’m performing the role of caregiver, but it’s much more than simply performing tasks.  It requires the best of my entire personality – my best perceptions, thoughts, and feelings.  I’m called to be humble, but this is not a humility undermined by any...

Affective Deprivation Disorder (AfDD) ... Lack of Human Intimacy Richard P. Johnson, PhD I ran across a new emotional diagnosis recently: Affective Deprivation Disorder, or AfDD. This discovery raised a question in my mind... might some people suffer from Spiritual Deprivation Disorder, or SpDD? I'll discuss AfDD in this blog and SpDD in the next.   What is Affective Deprivation Disorder, or AfDD?   AfDD refers to a decided lack of emotional support in one's closest relationship. AfDD is most commonly seen in married persons whose spouses cannot communicate on a feeling or empathic level. The non-emotional spouse generally suffers...

25 Ways to Live “Ageless in the Lord”Articulating the New Fullness of Life Only Offered by the Later Years  Aging teaches me …    That the true purpose of maturation is gaining closer communion with God That as my body diminishes, my spirit advances To live in a new abundance of inner light To light the path to sacred agelessness To tend the garden of my soul To pursue personal and spiritual transformation To embrace my True Self To step beyond the “fake” of the world The paradox of living: that loss is my primary means for growth To become a...

Fr. Benedict Groeschel reminds us in his book, Spiritual Passages, that there are four types of spiritual seekers, those who seek:  Unity, in the form of order, harmony, and consistency Truth, what is right Goodness, what helps humans Beauty, what reflects God’s love  One of the spiritual transitions of our maturing years is to gather up these four into a new integration.  Yet this integration process is not easy, it requires that we remain ever open to the nudges of the Spirit, the inner call of God, and it requires our patience as it moves forward in steps, more or...