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Are you aging gracefully? This month we’re focussed on the process of aging and entering our senior years with sound fitness and lots of mental health to lean into liberally.
Have you ever met an individual in their 70s or 80s that you would love to become when you get older? Almost 30 years ago, I met a woman at a slide presentation at a local library in Ottawa. The speaker was a young woman who had completed the Camino de Santiago, walking 780 km (484 miles) over the ground of an ancient, spiritual pilgrimage across northern Spain.
While her talk was super interesting and something I really wanted to do, eventually, if I ever found the time, I was super captivated by the woman who must have been in her 70s sitting just behind and to the left of me. After the talk and slide presentation was over, I waited to speak to this wisdom bearer with long white braids and a sun-kissed face full of laugh lines.
I introduced myself and asked her if she’d planned to walk the Camino de Santiago, and she said yes, in the coming fall, in September, but first she was off to Australia to participate in a few dragon boat races. I felt my whole inner belly light up and smile deep. I asked her if I could be so bold and asked her her age. She laughed and told me that she was 82.
I let her know how thankful I was to have met her and wished her much luck in the pursuit of her upcoming goals. “Oh,” she said, “it doesn’t have anything to do with luck.” And then she winked at me.
In those few short minutes, I’d found my mentor. Last fall, I took my white haired self off to Spain with a 25 lb pack sack on my back, filled with oily foot balm, wool socks, zip-off hiking pants, hiking boots, one other outfit in a zip lock bag, a nightgown, a small sleeping bag, a silk liner, laundry soap, body soap, a micro towel, and a guide for the St. James Way. I’d researched the contents of my pack for years, literally.
Even though I was super nervous, after 5 days of walking 22-32 kilometers (13.67 - 19.88 miles) per day, I started to find my stride. With the Pyrenees Mountains settling down on the horizon at my back, I set my sights on the flat Macetas (flat dry landscape also termed the Roman roads), while enjoying café con leche and egg and potato pie for first breakfast. Second breakfast was often a chocolate pastry. Yup, I was burning a ton of calories every single day!
My walking partner was a beloved patient of mine who’d done the trek two years prior with her daughter and her friend. I felt happy, safe, and hitting my stride in ways I’d never imagined, while enjoying the art in museums, stopping to meditate in churches, and really sinking into the nature of the occurrences cascading on the tide of my daily intentions. It became highly spiritual and very deeply personal. I’ve not shared much of my experience with anyone since, as I’ve been integrating all of the experiences I had over many months.
Over the last 30 years, it has really caused me to think about intentional aging. How do I want to be, feel, and celebrate my wisdom bearing years? I have some very deep thoughts around this. Some of them are included in the two articles that I penned that are attached to this composition. Let me know at the bottom of this blog what thoughts you’ve had about living into your senior years with intention as opposed to luck.
Love,
Ally and Jeff
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