My Pledge of 2010

So here I am, 63 years old and still struggling with myself. I can’t come to terms with my age or, shall I say, aging. I obviously inherited this attitude from my Dad. He is 92 and still not congruent with his age. It points out that the mind and body are not one, mind thinks entirely different than what it hears from body. Body says ouch, oops, yikes and the mind hears, oh just a minor flesh wound, no worries. So here is Dad, age 90, on a steep hill at the beach, pulling weeds. Now, mind you, multiple times a day, he loses balance, and uses furniture to help him walk. His body says “yikes” he hears “no worries”. If he were to fall, it would be awful with bad results it is not worth the risk. Weeds are no big deal. So, I plead with him to come off the hill and promise not to go there again. He then says, “I can’t get it though my head that I am aging”. What can I say, I get that.
My body talks to me everyday, sadly, many times. When I look in the mirror, I take a double take. I could go into all my issues, but that would be boring. My big ones revolve around food, migraines and reflux. Fun wow, so I think they wear on me and tell me how aging sucks and I should adjust accordingly. How do I come to terms? Do I stop eating stuff (yes, some for sure) living, risking, doing what I want or like to do, or do I opt for a more refined slower paced life? Do I feel sorry for myself and mope? Well, no contest, mind wins, just keep on keeping-on and body must follow. I will keep skiing, practicing my yoga, playing, dancing, swinging, biking, weeding, lifting, climbing, going and going. I will be mindful, however, of what my body tells me, and quit when it is enough, rest as needed, refresh more often. Sometimes I won’t be happy about it, when I want to make that ski run one more time or do the moguls faster stronger, or get off the bike and walk, or put the garden tools down. I must reduce my expectations but not motivation. Readjust my production, but not my attitude. I am hoping that through yoga I can keep in touch with what is possible and gracefully let go what is not. Yoga, for me, is to make union; mind and body; spirit and soul; real and ideal. Let it be my tool to a rich and active life. Let it keep me safe and realistic as I age and change. I make this pledge to me and for the ones I that love, the ones I blaze this trail for just like my Dad has for me. He is still cranked at 92 now, he is golfing (9 holes)…driving (yikes)….weeding (on flat ground), walking (holding on too furniture taking many rest stops). BLAZING THAT TRAIL.