THE BLESSING OF AGE
Learn by doing
Proverbs 3:1-2, 5-6: "My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: for length of days, and long life, and peace shall they add to thee...Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths."
I have now lived over seven decades.
How the heck did I make it this far?? Dunno....must be the mercy of God.
Do I, from the Boomer generation, long to be young again??
Not remotely.
Isn't that what the old are supposed to long for?? Aren't we supposed to " look young??"
I reject that entire demand and template and that is also a subject for future writing pieces, perhaps from my Ko-fi page. (Don’t get me started…)
From the timeless wisdom of my own Boomer Generation (deep sarcasm) :" Don't trust anyone over 30!" "Youthquake" (whatever the hey that meant?) “Do your own thing” (ditto??) "Sexual freedom is just wonderful!" I lived it and trust me, it is not.
In rueful retrospect, YUCK!
Hence, why I write my warnings of " what NOT to do", in my inimitable Blunt Oregon girl manner, "don't do what I did, it did not turn out well. Learn from one wounded warrior and avoid this path. "
Based on my vast experience with BLUNDERS, I would humbly suggest, in addition to the formal schooling of "higher education", AKA “college” if you so desire, consider " learn by doing". Accumulate years of intense life experience and even a few years will teach you things, through ups, downs and sideways. This will actually benefit you. I also think that is part of the entrepreneur’s ethos, whether a micro-entrepreneur like me, worker of one, or a large one.
When I demonstrated that despite my very intelligent mind, I did not thrive at the very intense college game of "DEMAND" and " CRUSH THE COMPETITION", I simply began to work at humble jobs. I found, to my surprise, that I learned more in a week or two of an actual job, than weeks or months with books or teaching alone. The vaunted "front line" was an effective and very straightforward method of learn by doing for a job or task. Watch, ask questions, take trembling hands and apply to said job or task, and amazingly, the raw and sometimes untempered human "BEENS" show the way. This does not dismiss the wonder of learning in schools but could be well- combined with direct experience from point a to b. As Steve Bannon says, " ACTION ACTION ACTION".
I have done best in the class of real life, flawed and raw as it is. This is the rough edge of the entrepreneur spirit, whether macro or micro.
Also there is the law OF GRAVITY!
Oh that...I thought I would be young forever...deep sigh of reality...
Nope.
Elder age is tough, with financial concerns, health concerns and the winding down or ending of formal work life and life in general... It does, however, still have the same elements of any other time of life, one minute, one day, one foot in front of the other. Wisdom, the accumulation of hard-won learning from the school of hard knocks, the learn by doing template does work.
Our Western culture of 2025 still worships the "perfection" of youth...what a misnomer that is! Youth is wonderful for what it is, the excitement of getting out into the world and trying things you have not done before, especially the world of work, seeing the results in the laboratory of reality. You have more energy and spirit to begin with.
That being said, the cynic still in me says, sometimes the youth abuse the Elders, by mocking the difficulties of age and making fun of getting old (may I remind you, YOU will get old, if you are blessed enough to live long enough). Age is certainly the great humbler! Also, some Elders misuse the energy of youth and like a vampire, draw from it in an unpleasant way.
It does go both ways.
As an Elder woman of 72, I would say I am just grateful to be still breathing, to have lived over seven decades, when so many I knew from youth, did not.
I did return to my roots in God and His Son, after 35 years of sorrowful wandering and rebellion. Returning Home to God made the difference for me, what I refer to as “collapsing on God’s front porch”. God helps where humans cannot. Papa God refers to me as "one of My late bloomers" and late, I may be...but I do not wish for youth. I wished in my youth, for a mentor or wise Elder to help me, as my Dad told me I "raised myself through high school" . Parent's marriage collapsed, Mom and I moved out in 1966, Dad filed for divorce shortly thereafter, Mom died overnight of a stroke when I was in 8th grade in 1966. Grades 9-12 were spent back with Dad...who did provide for me but was not enthusiastic about having a grieving teen daughter back under his roof. The searing Vietnam War (took one brother from me in 1968) broke apart the Boomers, as well as the chaos of social and sexual revolution of the 1960's.
Ah, well, all of us have our slam-dunks and these were mine.
I have always had an "old soul" and do not live life on a surface level...in fact too deep for my own good and I sent many screaming down the street in terror...
Strangely enough, I would take Elder age over youth, if given a choice, if that is not odd...
My cogent and rueful lesson through the intensity of my own life: bring all your pain and anger directly to God and His Son. Do not try to valiantly solve things on your own. Learn by doing, offer as much respect as you can to those who came before you , share your goodwill with others you feel guided to help. Enjoy the times of your life, where-ever you are and plan for more than a day in advance. I am speaking from the point of view of one who has spent much of her life flying by my fingertips, not planning, but surviving through stumble. I have survived but I have also wasted much of my life in rebellion. No life is perfect or smooth...I wish it was. Life is not Instagram, as much as people want it to be.
Life is accumulation of experience, taking the hard experiences and sharing your grief and sorrow first with God, seeking His wise counsel, repenting quickly and keeping heart clear, and then offering help to others who you feel guided to help. One single day at a time has to be the core of things...and knowing you have a Heavenly Father and His Son, Who love and guide you along that path. They actually KNOW things...
Wendy Elizabeth Williams Friday, February 21, 2025
--Consider becoming a paid subscriber at $5.00 a month ($1.25 a week or $60 for the year)
--Consider donating any amount from $1 on up, on my Ko-fi page at https://Ko-fi.com/wendyelizabethwilliams. You can donate one time, regularly or monthly. I am continuing to write shorter pieces on Ko-fi , of my life-long love of all things fabric, garments and makeup. Some of these are lighthearted and some deeper, but I enjoy writing them and if you love fabric and such, check them out! I will offer a hyperlink on the Notes page, when I have one new Ko-fi piece ready (later tonight!)
--Consider hiring me for short-hop assignments in what I call "emotional-descriptive" writing. I am skilled at this. Authentic emotion can be an excellent resource to offer your own business to the world! Contact me here on Substack Notes via a Direct Message, or contact me on Ko-fi with a message
--Please pray for me that I hear Holy Spirit's still small voice of counsel for my writing work.
Another great think piece. I would take these last years over my youth due to the sheer stupidity that flowed out of me when I was young. That being said, old age is loss of love. We've all lost so many others, it's hard to bear at time. Life is rough, any way you take it, but blessed are those who cling to God.
HE knows, HE hears.
Trust His grace to shape your words.
Whispered truth, echoes with thunder.