Our recent post, Purpose Immersed in Grace, sparked some lively discussion among a few of our readers. While some people may fill this season of life with productivity and various projects, others long for simplicity and quiet reflection. The “do” versus “be” debate strains the soul, and sometimes leaves one feeling either overworked or slothful.
Midlife is a complicated season, particularly for those embarking on retirement or major transitions. While new opportunities may loom on the horizon, they can only be grasped when one lets go of something. The feeling has been compared to that of a trapeze artist suspended in midair somewhere between releasing one bar and seizing the next. It’s uncertain, exhilarating and scary as all get out.
Sometimes, midlife and beyond feels like an entirely new country. We do not know the terrain or the language. We don’t have a roadmap telling us how to age. We feel lost.
Joan Chittister, a Benedictine nun, author and speaker, wrote these guiding words:
There is something about being free of the expectations and deadlines, pressures and responsibilities, schedules and public activities of the middle years that put the later years of life in a totally different light. There is space now and time. There is possibility now and the kind of accent on people, rather than projects, that we haven’t known for years. There is a sense of freshness in these years that speaks a foreign language to the heart.
The Gift of Years:Growing Older Gracefully, (Blue Bridge Books, 2008, Page 27)
“There is a sense of freshness in these years that speaks a foreign language to the heart”……I love these words! What a gift this interlude in life allows us. Possibilities. Reflection. Serenity. New vision. New directions. New priorities. New choices.
Sister Joan goes on to say: “The slate is clean. The days are ours. The task is to learn how to live again.”
Perhaps it’s both “be” and “do”!
Enjoy the season. Embrace hanging in mid-air… and be ready to take hold of what God has planned for you.
by Leona Bergstrom, Director, Re-Ignite
