WILDLY FREE ELDER
The Artistry of Aging
Elder Voices
“Wisdom, then, is the art of balancing the known with the unknown, the suffering with the joy; it is a way of linking the whole of life together in a now and deeper unity.
John O’Donohue, Anam Cara
The landscape of aging into elderhood. Navigating the terrain is indeed an art. The artistry of finding ones unique way in an unknown never been there before choreographed dance of light and dark, sadness and joy, sickness and health, belonging and aloneness, sacred and mundane, acceptance and rejection…..living and death.
Each one of us walks a unique path. Yet we yearn to reach out to others, to feel that we too may be a wise elder built upon the experiences and knowing of our lives. Every culture has their own path towards elderhood. Some honor their elders and look to them for wisdom and guidance while other cultures ignore, reject and make invisible.
What would it be like to tell your story? Told in words, poetry, art, music or dance. To share it out into the world. Perhaps you are already doing so….or perhaps you don’t think you have anything to contribute.
Here is where I invite you into a circle of global elders to speak out through your offering. To contribute to the voices that will be passed down to other elders, and to generations to come, of crossing over the threshold into elderhood – your unique journey and destiny this lifetime .
A simple story, an experience that shifted you and woke you up, a poem that simply emerged one day, a challenge that you never saw coming, dance celebrating an aging body, a journey into the shadow, connection with nature, ceremony and ritual, relationship transitions and transformation, honoring the dying process, a moment filled with laughter and connection, wisdom or guidance you wish to share with those younger and/or other elders…..the possibilities are endless.
As many of you know I often use the short films from Green Renaissance and share them through blog posts. Here is one I shared in the past of one beautiful elder woman who is not reticent to share her grounded nature based wisdom. You can’t help but smile with her….
As we age, we grow into a deeper kind of beauty, one which works its way from the inside out. It’s a more authentic beauty because it radiates from within. So let’s celebrate lives well lived. And feel lucky to wake each morning to appreciate what the new day has to offer.
Filmed in McGregor, South Africa. Featuring Annie Norgarb.
This is where the Wildly Free Elder global community comes in.
Wildly Free Elder community birthed during the pandemic in June of 2020. A time when virtual connection was all we could manage. A time of great upheaval, fear, loneliness and death….and at the same time an open space for creatively connecting with each other any way we could.
It was the intention at that time to have a global community of elders, some spotlighted on the website, and others simply interested in communing with those who were at the same stage of their lives. Since that time we have lost some of our community to death and the original purpose has been left fallow for awhile as life presented challenges and periods where attention was taken towards the unique ups and downs of life.
Over the past two and a half years others writings, stories, poetry and art have been posted out into the wider community of elders. Now I hear the strong call to extend an open invitation to the wider global elder community, as well as those spotlighted on the site, to contribute their elder wisdom, challenges, stories, poetry, humor, and joys…. onto this web space.
“Wisdom is a deeper way of knowing. Wisdom is the art of living in rhythm with your soul, your life and the divine. “
John O’Donohue,
I learn from, and am richer for, the wisdom of others life path. Their fears and joys, their creativity and experiences of navigating this last stage of a human lifetime. There is much out there already including the sacred teachings of indigenous earth based humans and the ever present wise guidance of the natural world.
I say let’s add more by contributing to “Elder Voices” and see what emerges. Please submit stories, poetry, art or even short videos to be part of this collection. Others will benefit from your contributions!
Fill in the Contact Form below and let me know what you have to contribute. I will send you an email address to send your submission to if you don’t already have it. Thank You!! Gaye Abbott
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Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
You can find ALL of the 2022 31-Days Elder Muse posts in the archives here: https://wildlyfreeelder.com/2022/12/
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/17/23