WILDLY FREE ELDER
The Artistry of Aging
Vulnerability: The Gift of Being Seen
Mars Hill, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott/April 20, 2025
“There is a quiet kind of strength in choosing to be seen — fully, honestly, without the armour. Vulnerability isn’t weakness — it’s the wild, trembling courage of being real, of letting others witness the parts of us we usually keep hidden. And in doing so, we begin to gather up the forgotten pieces of ourselves.” Reflections of Life
As the years accumulate at some point we start recognizing that we have entered the last part of our embodied lives. This often comes with a feeling of great vulnerability as passing the mid-point there are now more years we have lived than to be lived.
It all becomes so very precious.
Especially when so many people around you, or you yourself, are facing life threatening or quality of life challenges and loss of independence. It puts everything in perspective. The willingness to reveal “the raw, unguarded places where we finally let ourselves be known” allows a depth of surrender into each day with our whole selves – no masks or hiding allowed.
Friendships, partnerships, family and community become a vital support network upon which we rely more and more.
Not only are we asked to reveal our personal vulnerability and let our guard, defenses and self judgement go, but we also must live with how the very earth that supports our well being is critically vulnerable because of human interference to the natural way of life.
In this last week a beloved 63-year-old friend of mine texted me that a recent breast biopsy she had revealed invasive ductal carcinoma. I was devastated, for her, and the impact this would have on our friendship. It also took me back into the grief I felt several years ago now with another dear woman friend who passed away from Stage 4 breast cancer and experienced great pain and trauma before she died.
I want to be able to hold my current friend and weep with her but that is not her way….yet. There is so much information to gather and testing to be done before a clear pathway will present itself to her. Before the impact reveals itself. She is not ready to expose her vulnerability to me yet, and subsequently I hold off from sharing mine. Instead I wonder what is the “right way” to be with her when she does reach out. I trust I will know when the time comes and simply listen.
It is in these moments where we allow ourselves to be seen fully that we finally get a glimpse of who we are and why we are here…experiencing the glory of being alive with all the pain….and all of the love, joy and beauty.
“There is a quiet kind of strength in choosing to be seen — fully, honestly, without the armour. Vulnerability isn’t weakness — it’s the wild, trembling courage of being real, of letting others witness the parts of us we usually keep hidden. And in doing so, we begin to gather up the forgotten pieces of ourselves.
In those tender moments of openness, something begins to shift. We stop holding our breath. We find ourselves softening into the present, no longer bracing against life but moving with it. Being human is not about flawlessness, but about presence — about showing up, cracked and luminous, for whatever the day brings. The cracks let the light in, yes — but they also let us out, more whole, more alive, more deeply connected to what truly matters. This is where the real beauty lives — not in the polished edges, but in the raw, unguarded places where we finally let ourselves be known.”
Featuring Jane Kennedy
Filmed in Sedgefield, South Africa. Support Reflections of Life in creating more films like this : http://www.patreon.com/reflectionsoflife
Thank you. Justine & Michael 💚
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 05/05/25
The Beauty of Life In What We Give
Salmon Creek Beach/N. California/Photo by Gaye Abbott
“Life is strange. We come with nothing and fight for everything, and in the end, we leave everything and go with nothing.”
Life is a fleeting journey, a cycle of gaining and letting go. We arrive with empty hands, yet we spend our days chasing, building, and holding on, as if we can outrun time itself.
We grasp at love, success, meaning, desperate to make something of the brief moments we are given.
And yet, no matter how much we gather, there comes a day when we must release it all. But perhaps the beauty of life is not in what we keep, but in what we give, in the love we share, the kindness we leave behind, the lives we touch along the way ..” ~Antoinette Sallit
This morning at my favorite community coffee shop a woman I know stood up and asked me for a hug. As we hugged she asked me the question, “how are you today?” I replied that at this stage of life I have learned to celebrate every morning when I wake up as it means I have one more day of embodied moments to explore, love, connect, share and create.
This could be my last day here, but being fully present in that hug, in that moment, was a gift, given and received. Simple.
Many conversations here in the U.S. now are about the less than welcome changes that are happening because of the present administration. An antidote to those often endless fear and anger based conversations can be to attend to extending love, compassion, deep listening, humor, kindness, creativity and acknowledgement in the moments given to us.
“In truth, we’re just passing through and before you know it, we will all be ancestors. May we not forget everything is temporary. What do we want to leave in our place?” Mary Morgaine Squire
To be part of a “gift economy” where prosperity grows from the flow of relationships, and where the currency of being in those relationships is expressed in gratitude, interdependence and reciprocity – not the accumulation of goods. Where wealth is having enough to share and “making good relationships with the human and more than human world is the primary currency of well being.” (Robin Wall Kimmerer/The Serviceberry)
This week a beloved friend and I talked about making a positive difference and the ways in which we can contribute to that. She shared with me about a stack of 3 x 5 cards she has at home with a rubber band around it. On each of these cards is the name and contact information of someone who has been in her life over the years and has made an impact on her, the community, the natural world in a myriad of ways.
Each week she chooses the card on top and from a selection of greeting cards she has writes a personal message acknowledging this person and the contributions they have made and sends it off in the mail. In a time when most everything is digital – text, email etc – a personally written card has the potential to touch someone deeply making them feel seen and acknowledged for who they are.
That they are loved and thought of. That they have made a difference.
It seems vastly important that there is tangible proof we are making a difference, a positive difference. That someone has noticed a special contribution made and are grateful for that.
That we are loved….and that we have loved well.
“When we lose someone we love, we suddenly feel free to speak beautiful, flowery sentiments of gratitude, affection and admiration; words that we’ve kept bottled-up for years. And now that we’re finally ready to say them, they can’t be heard by the person who needs to hear it most. Let’s not wait for another funeral to tell someone how much we love them. Time is startlingly short – let’s give eulogies to the living – memorialise them face-to-face. Speak all the words of love, to those we love. Say everything while they can still hear. Let’s celebrate life and those who matter in our lives, every day! This film, which chronicles how the global Gracenotes movement began, tells the story of the first Grace note that Andrea ever wrote, a eulogistic tribute to her father. “
Featuring Andrea Driessen (www.AndreaDriessen.com and http://www.Grace-Notes.org) Filmed in Seattle, USA. Watch her TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/andrea_drie…
All of our films are made possible through the generous support of our patrons. To be part of this journey : / reflectionsoflife If you’d prefer to make once off contribution, our PayPal details are : paypal.me/reflectionsfilms Join our YouTube channel to get early access to our films : / @reflectionsoflife
Who is Reflections of Life? We are Justine and Michael (previously known as Green Renaissance). We use our passion for film making and our love of storytelling, to remind our audience of one simple truth – that we are all human. The more that we understand and believe in this interconnectedness, the more we will treat ourselves, one another, and planet earth with a greater sense of compassion.
Filming – by Michael Raimondo Editing – by Justine du Toit Sound mix – by Tamryn Breakey
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 04/15/25
The Ancient One
Artist: Maartje van Dokkum
“No one tells the oceans or the trees or the mountains that they’re too old. They talk of how powerful, how grounded, how awesome they are…imagine if we thought the same way about ourselves as we got older. Maybe then we’d realize how spectacular we are!”
– Becky Hemsley
There once was an ancient one who looked upon this Earth existence as a grand and mysterious experiment. An artistic endeavor. They were wise enough to live each day in wholeness.
This being is all of us without cultural restrictive and defining labels. To look upon each day and all living beings as a blank canvas upon which we live in the present moment without fear and paint, sing, dance, write, cultivate, love, laugh, cry, grieve – embracing the unfolding moments.
What would that be like? How much space and opportunity would we take? Could we take?
Like the weaving together of ancient rock, crooked tree branch, flowing water, oxygen rich air and warm sunlight that has seen the history of human endeavors repeating itself over and over again – the same patterns and habits, slowly putting out the spark of creation in each other.
Dry Falls, Highlands, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott
Who is this ancient one that shines so brightly without words that we can’t help but absorb their wisdom, enormous sense of humor and artistry. It is you without your blinders on.
Trusting the possibilities of life in a body even though fear creeps in often, especially these days. But it does not claim you, nor do you cower in place not certain of your next step. This is a time for courage. To shine as part of the star dust and wild nature you are made of.
“It is only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on Earth and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up that we begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it were the only one we had. “ ~Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
The ancient wise parts of us know that dismantling fear, the perception of everything as a threat that our nervous system alerts us to – even things that aren’t – is vitally important for our well being. Not allowing forces outside of us to manipulate and control where we lose the ability to distinguish between an actual crisis and a perceived one.
How about self care as a revolutionary act? Our nervous system doesn’t think in pieces. The fear, the rage, the anxiety and uncertainty — isn’t just intellectual. It’s physiological. Our bodies are absorbing this era in our tightened shoulders, our sleepless nights, our frayed tempers.
There are ways to unplug from all of this. A stream of moments that bring wholeness, peace and connection with life in its myriad of forms, textures and possibilities. The challenge is that at times we must surrender completely into what we don’t know….yet.
“Spirituality and different stories serve different people at different times. And at certain moments, their stories stop being able to meet the needs of those times. We are capable of developing new stories. We have histories, but we also have futures. We have possibilities, and we have imagination.”-john a. powell
The more we are in balance through acts of self care, the more we have to give and the more possibility and opportunity reveal themselves. The power of unplugging from the prevalent fear of these times we inhabit can be our unique contribution towards this evolution. Living as the Ancient One would….
PRACTICAL WAYS TO UNPLUG FROM PANIC, ANXIETY AND FEAR, EVOLVING TO LIVE EACH DAY TO THE FULLEST:
MOVE YOUR BODY: Walk, stretch, dance anywhere and anytime. Shake your arms, legs and pelvis. Whatever you do, just move. Motion reminds your body that you are not a prisoner, trapped within a life that someone or something else is trying to manipulate. Surrender completely into what you don’t know….yet.
BREATHE LIKE YOU MEAN IT: “When everything feels like too much, try this: Inhale for four counts, hold for four, exhale for six. Do it again. And again. Longer exhales signal to your brain that you are not in immediate danger.”* Joy Okoye
Or better yet, practice Breath of Joy for two minutes and notice how everything in your body, mind and emotion shifts. A great reset that you can share with friends…..or strangers! Suggestion – on that last exhale with bent knees, after three inhales, freely let out a joyous sound. Love this practice!
FIND YOUR PEOPLE AND TALK TO THEM: For the most part, humans do better when they feel like they belong to something and are connected with others. Speak your truth, even if your voice shakes. Listen with compassion and focused attention.
LET JOY BE YOUR DEVOTED COMPANION: So laugh out loud and fully. Find a song that makes you dance. Pet a dog. Eat something delicious. Read something absurd. Be present to the miracle of a Spring flower unfurling, or a young child seeing magic in the world around them. Small joys are not frivolous. Fill your moments with them. (Practice Breath of Joy above).
CREATE ONE SMALL RITUAL THAT GROUNDS YOU: Light a candle in the morning as your first action of the day. Write one sentence in your journal before bed — something that reminds you of what is still good or that you are grateful for. Make and sip tea or coffee with intention. When the world feels like quicksand, rituals remind you where solid ground is.*Joy Okoye
NAME WHAT IS HAPPENING AND THE EMOTION THAT IS STIRRED: When we name our emotions they lose some of their grip. Remembering that we are not that emotion or state of being. They are simply moving through us as we observe them. Everything always changes and shifts.
PERCEIVE BEAUTY EVERYWHERE IN NATURE USING YOUR SENSES: To recognize something is beautiful all it takes is a change in perception. Rewilding by aligning yourself with sense of place as your attention comes into balance.
Lay on your back and watch the clouds as you did as a child. See the creation of magical or mundane creatures from the always shifting clouds. Gaze at the stars from the vantage point of lying on the earth. Name your own personal star. Immerse yourself in the morning birdsong allowing it to live in your body resonating with the music of the earth. Immerse yourself in the rhythm of a salt water wave surrendering into its embrace . Be in conversation with the mystery of the universe…..
“If we don’t take care of ourselves, how can we truly care for others?
It’s easy to fall into the habit of always putting others first, giving endlessly without stopping to tend to our own needs. But when we neglect ourselves for too long, we run empty, leaving us exhausted, resentful, or unable to be present for the very people we want to help.
True kindness isn’t just about self-sacrifice — it’s about balance, about making sure we have the strength, energy, and peace of mind to show up fully and wholeheartedly. Taking time for ourselves isn’t selfish — it’s an act of love, a quiet promise to those we cherish that we will be here, steady and whole.
Because when we care for ourselves, we don’t just sustain our own light — we make it shine brighter, sending out warmth and strength to those around us. And in that glow, we find the truest form of giving — one that is rooted not in depletion, but in abundance.”
Featuring Christine Bayly
Website – www.thebreathingspace.co.za
Email – christine@thebreathingspace.co.za
Filmed in Cape Town, South Africa by REFLECTIONS OF LIFE
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 03/31/25
Soul’s Calling
Wolf Creek, Grass Valley, CA/Photo by Gaye Abbott
When I am still, standing by the creek at the altar created from stones, feathers and magic, the voice of the deepest parts of my soul is clearly heard. The flowing water in front of me recognizes the obstacles in the way and merely finds a way around them.
As elder I embrace the sacredness of these moments on my life line, not knowing when those moments will cease all together returning me back into the cosmos as star dust. That only makes them more precious.
How could I possibly live this life within a mainstream narrative that dismisses age as something to overcome, or combat, or somehow change. Hair has silver streaks and skin has lost elasticity, but the soul – that innate deepest part of us – celebrates it all.
For this is the time of life when a new song is sung, even with the challenges that seem to continuously emerge.
Yet it is the challenges in life that are like fuel for the fire of a soul’s calling. There isn’t an already prescribed way to follow your unique path, like a step by step guide. There is only a knowing in each moment. A body felt wholeness in the choices you make. It takes courage and trust to listen to and follow that quiet truth within.
At times it becomes as simple as what unfolded for me this morning. I don’t need to describe or completely understand my unique souls calling, or even go into an esoteric explanation of what that is, but instead I follow the guidance that is constantly flowing and take action as called. A spontaneous inner and outer dance.
That is where light and love reside. That is where kindness is born. That is where consciousness shifts.
Penny the Dachshund and Margaret/Photo by Gaye Abbott
Calling the doggie by name that is walking along the path with her humans at our local nature park. She runs to me to present for scratching and love;
A surprise birthday card and dark chocolate bar hand delivered to my local coffee shop for the owner who has created an amazing opportunity for community to gather and enjoy coffee, support and conversation together;
A visit to dear friends taking with me an elder blind and deaf miniature Dachshund, Penny, that I am caring for. They have both been sick and needed some small dog loving since their own French Bulldog, Gordon passed away last November;
The cashier at my local grocery store says how beautiful the weather is. I suggest getting on the PA system and telling everyone (staff and customers) there will be a 15 minute dance break out in the parking lot to celebrate Spring. Though that wasn’t done the smiles and laughter that lit up faces at the thought were delicious.
Be true to what is calling to you….what unique song will be sung?
“There comes a time in life when we must tune out the noise — the expectations of others, the pressures of society, the voices that tell us who we should be — and instead, listen to the quiet truth within us.
Following your own calling is not always easy. It requires courage to walk a path that others may not understand, to trust your heart when the world offers doubt, and to honor what feels right for your soul, even when it goes against the current. But in the end, the deepest fulfillment comes not from seeking approval, but from living authentically, embracing the journey that is uniquely yours.“
Featuring Nirmala Nair.
Filmed in Cape Town, South Africa by Reflections of Life
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 03/15/25
Reseeding The World
Gratitude by Lesley Charnock
“Every time we stop to notice the moment and cherish ourselves for who we are, we have the opportunity to feed the world. You call this world into being through the smallest gestures, something as simple as holding your morning egg in your hands before you crack it into the cast iron skillet, giving thanks for the gift of this tiny nourishment. Every small motion of recognition and gratitude is like a seed helping us bloom anew. All it takes is for each of us to tend to the smallest things of life with the utmost care, and a revolution will be born – that tidal wave in perception we’ve all been waiting for.” ~Asia Suler in “Mirrors In the Earth“
As we reach our elder years most of us will have experienced pivotal moments of great loss and grieving. Eventually we recognize it is time to step back into the world – into our life – again. Like planting a seed of ourselves and finding what nourishes it into bloom.
Seeds configuring as acts of kindness;
generous listening;
the carrying forward of love and compassion in new ways;
sharing spontaneous laughter and humor;
transparent honesty with humility;
extending hospitality – creation of an inviting and trustworthy space;
creating new possibilities for living forward through attending to the smallest things of life;
actively opening pathways to collaboration, beauty and creative artistry.
All of this “tending to the smallest things in life with the utmost care” and attention, with conscious gratitude and appreciation, contributes to not only our own blooming and peace, but to that of others we touch. And yes, a r-evolution of perception that is so needed at this time. An understanding and acceptance of where to place our attention…..and where not to.
No one needs to tell us that our time here is limited, but we most often forget that reality. We walk with this silent companion – “death” – by our side in every moment. Experiencing heart break as we witness the passing of friends, family members and our beloved animal companions from our lives. Sometimes death of loved ones comes suddenly, unexpectedly, and we are left with picking up the pieces of our life. Knowing that one day it will be us.
Kalalau Trai, Kauai, HI
I will never forget a time in my life, a dangerous, challenging yet spectacularly beautiful hike on the original Hawaiian trail along the Napali Coast to Kalalau beach. A 90-degree turn on the trail with wind blowing, a heavy backpack on, with nothing to hang on to on one flat rock faced side, and a sheer drop into the ocean below over rocks on the other side. People had lost their lives here.
A dramatic reminder to tend to taking one step at a time in life with the utmost care. A life lesson that is still carved into the cellular memory of my body and soul.
As we are ready, it is in the willingness to open our hearts after loss. A catalyst to create space for the light to shine back into life’s moments. To tend to the smallest things with utmost care. Reseeding the world out of which births new beginnings and interconnected perception.
After all how much longer do we have for adventure?
“Grief is a journey with no clear map, a path that twists through sorrow, longing, and moments of quiet reflection. In the year since losing a loved one, the weight of absence lingers, but it does not have to define the days ahead. Through memories, and small acts of courage, healing begins — not by forgetting, but by carrying love forward in a new way.
Even in the shadow of loss, life continues to offer quiet reminders of its beauty. Choosing to step into the world again does not erase grief, but it allows space for hope and meaning to exist alongside it. There is strength in opening one’s heart to life after loss, and even in the darkest moments, light can still be found.”
Featuring Lesley Charnock (Website – https://lesleycharnock.com)
Filmed in Cape Town, South Africa by Reflections of Life
Support us in creating more films like this : http://www.patreon.com/reflectionsoflife
Thank you. Justine & Michael 💚
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/28/25
Just Stop Running
Photography/Winter River Rock Spiral Creation by Gaye Abbott/2025
“We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” ~Joseph Campbell
I sometimes wonder what my life would have been like if I hadn’t spent so much time trying to control the events of it. If I had stopped running away and instead stepped towards the center of my being trusting life’s unfolding and synchronicity, and my own unique style of expression. If so much attention hadn’t given such importance to others opinions, demands and expectations.
When is it time to become the person we have come in to be?
Just the other day, taking my place in line, at a favorite Asheville restaurant, I saw a very tall red haired giant of a man, who could have been a Scottish Highlander in a previous life, standing back and staring into space. I then noticed that perhaps he had been in line and I had cut in front of him. Beckoning his attention back to earth I apologized for cutting in line and stepped back so he could take his place in front of me.
A conversation between us about daydreaming ensued in which he curiously asked me what my day dreaming was like. I remember saying something like “creative”. As we waited in line to order our conversation continued. He shared that he wrote poetry and had graduated from USFCA (University of San Francisco, California) in the Bay area with his MFA.
I asked him whether he had anything published, when really in hindsight my question might have been, “do you enjoy writing?” or “what does it feel like to you when you are creating poetry”? He answered my publishing question stating that when he would receive a “rejection” of his submitted poetry/writing that it sent him into a tailspin where he didn’t want to write anything for a year or two.
I felt great sadness when he said this, thinking about how much we depend on the approval of others for so many aspects of our lives. Rising and falling on the waves of opinions, expectations and critiques. Losing ourselves in the process of comparison. An amnesia of our unique expression.
How much of my own life had I done exactly that. Running away from the moment, from myself…..and from possibilities and opportunities that could have richly revealed themselves if I had only the courage to be still, to stop and wait – mind and body – and to trust.
Suddenly gazing into the mirror of artistry and saying yes to what is emerging. Realizing it is a choice to access and release into the wilds what calls to our hearts and souls.
Like exploring writing expression by creating a blog and sending it out into the world for the pure joy of it…
This Stop Running teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh is beautifully, and at times stunningly, conveyed in the video below. He states that the habit of running is very strong in us. In our body and in our mind. Especially given the challenges we face today.
Be completely at ease in the present moment. Not searching for anything, not running away. Instead looking deeply in order to get insight.
“I have arrived. I am home. I do not have the need to run any more. What I am looking for is right here and right now. Listen to the music of your breath. Breathe In – I have arrived. Breathe out – staying in the present moment.”
What will be revealed?
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/15/25
Attention Artistry
Frozen Fountain Water/Weaverville, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott
Today there were library books on hold for me to pick up on my morning walk through the park. Once home I set the books down on my bed and one was opened to a random page. What had drawn my attention about this particular book when I saw it in the bookstore last week?
The page it opened to felt like perfect guidance during a time I have been struggling with writing something that felt fresh, creative and off the grid of mainstream narrative. The first sentence captured the block I had created for myself with the second sentence following it being the antidote to dismantle it.
“If you are creating with other people in mind, crafting writing/artwork to appease or perform, the work will inevitably be hollow.
By contrast, if you create from a place of deep connection to the muse of your own personal terrain, your work will be something the world has never seen before.”
(Mirrors in the Earth: Reflections on Self Healing From The Living World by Asia Suler)
Frozen Creek Art, Nature Park in Weaverville, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott, 1/24/25
The same could be said for how we attend to the world around us. We get to choose where our attention is directed and how much time we spend attending. Whether our attention is drawn from innate curiosity, from the “have to” directives of our culture, or our need to somehow “belong”.
It has been at times brutally cold here in this last week, just now warming up enough for the creatures that inhabit our small community, including humans who are shedding some clothing and bringing out dogs to walk and children to explore. More birds are making their presence known and their calls vibrate through the air as the brilliant red cardinal sits on the bare branch before me.
The frozen creek art in the image above took my attention for many moments in time though I almost passed it by without a closer look. Coming closer I marveled at the colors, textures, lines and artistry that a simple freezing of water created and then captured it with a photo.
Each rock, twig, leaf, piece of dirt, flow of water and wind became a participant in this unique art piece – something that has never been seen before. Something that will continue to shift and change with the elements that contribute to its creation and its dismantling.
Do we perceive everything as awake, alive and interconnected?
What a different world it would be if we would choose to live from a more animistic perspective as many Indigenous cultures still hold. A belief system that acknowledges our world as a co-creation among equals – each life form contributing an important piece to the whole tapestry.
To see every life form as artistry unfolding. Even the braising mix on the cutting board……
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 01/30/25
Surrendering Into the Dance of Life
Snow Crystals Improving On My Car Window/Photography by Gaye Abbott
It happened in a state of complete surrender as my body fell backwards without any fear into the waiting arms of another behind me. Awakening from this dream of last night I was immediately immersed in memories of the many years I spent in the free form dance (ecstatic dance/contact improv/partner dance improv) communities of wherever I happened to be living.
Improvisation in dance is the process of creating movement spontaneously, without predetermined choreography or structure. It’s about embracing the present moment, listening to the music, and allowing your body to move intuitively in response to the rhythm, melody, and mood. Improvisation encourages exploration of new movement possibilities, experimentation with different shapes and dynamics, and expression of innermost emotions through dance. Connecting with others and self in a safe, respectful space without words while sensing the constant opportunities for connection.
Why was I continuously drawn to this community and practice of movement for a quarter of a century?
It freed me of my own and others expectations and judgements. It was a vehicle to open to life fully just as it is in any given moment without spoken words – all ranges of emotions, movements and sensations – often filled with play. At other times a path to giving space to uncomfortable feelings simply by honoring what was emerging in the moment through movement.
Couldn’t this way of being in dance be how we are in our life all the time? Not ruled by fear, but instead a sense of the ever changing landscape, both inner and outer, here and now.
Showing up with an open-hearted willingness to experience life fully just as it is without expectations or control, without preferences, judgements or labels, without resistance, or “running away” when it feels uncomfortable can be a challenging practice and way of being.
No separation. Only the continuous flow of life capturing the moment to moment creation, birth and death of any single moment in time and space. Exploring life’s impermanence.
What was always so extraordinary was when I surrendered the control that fear teaches us I felt more alive and present no matter how I was feeling before entering the dance space. No running away or distractions – that was impossible.
This way of being continues to teach me in the context of living as an elder, especially as my body shifts and changes with aging. A recent accident that results in physical pain and restriction becomes a guide. Opening into the pain instead of trying to escape or tame it means to me exploring with curiosity, and for some moments in time becoming one with it. Not particularly for the faint of heart but a perfect way to deeply understand the on going ever present dynamic of constant shifts and changes in any given moment.
What I learn in those moments of merging is a dissolving of pain, a softening if you will. Recognizing how much the protection and contraction – in other words trying to remove myself from the experience – has been the pattern that has perpetrated the on going nature of the pain and the barrier to completely allowing and accepting my bodies intelligence to do what it does best – heal the injury no matter how much time it takes.
For those of you who have never even considered experimenting with moving or living in this way here are a few guidelines below, borrowed from someone else. Recognizing that this way of being can also apply to, and be integrated into, every day life moments as an elder. Even if it is in “homeopathic” doses!
Benefits of Improvisation
- Creativity: Improvisation stimulates the creative imagination, allowing dancers to explore new movement ideas and develop their unique artistic voice.
- Freedom: Unlike choreographed routines, improvisation gives dancers the freedom to express themselves authentically and explore movement without constraints.
- Musicality: Improvisation teaches dancers to listen to the music attentively and respond intuitively to its rhythm, tempo, and dynamics.
- Spontaneity: Improvisation encourages dancers to trust their instincts and make split-second decisions, fostering spontaneity and adaptability on the dance floor.
- Collaboration: Improvisation can be a collaborative process, allowing dancers to interact and communicate with one another through movement, creating spontaneous duets, trios, or group improvisations.
Practices for Improvisation
- Body Awareness: Pay attention to your body sensations, breath, and energy levels as you move, and allow your movements to flow organically from within.
- Exploration: Experiment with different movement qualities, dynamics, and levels, and be open to exploring new ways of moving.
- Listening: Tune into the music and let it guide your movement, responding intuitively to its rhythm, melody, and mood.
- Risk-Taking: Embrace uncertainty and take risks in your movement, pushing beyond your comfort zone to discover new possibilities.
- Reflection: Take time to reflect on your improvisations and observe what worked well and what you might like to explore further in future improvisations.
Embracing improvisation as a way of living offers a valuable opportunity to explore movement, unleash creativity, connect with our senses and moment to moment experiences in a deeply personal way, and at the same time directly relating with life’s uncertainty.
So next time you step onto the dance floor – or into the moment – let go of expectations, trust your instincts, and allow your body, mind and heart to move freely. With improvisation, the possibilities are endless, and the journey is yours to explore….ENJOY!
Are you ready to surrender into the dance of life?
A very fun very short video to watch as an example of Improvisational West Coast Swing Dance is captured below. Let me just say in my experience it is a high to experience this kind of connection on the dance floor and in life! …and no my body could never do that kind of split (in case you were wondering!). Curious? Watch the video.
Be aware that this is all improvisational in the moment dance movement in complete connection with their partner, the energy between them, and what is intuitively showing up for each person in the moment. No choreography!
And yes, these are professional improv Swing dancers, but remember they don’t know what song will be played or who their partner will be before they get up to dance! The people sitting around in the background are all dancers and you can see how they feel about this improv dance by their enthusiastic reactions. 🙂
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through 2025 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/ *When you receive your email remember to click on the title in order to see all images and videos posted on the post website.
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 01/15/25
Just One Day
“The Navajo teach their children that every morning when the sun comes up, it’s a brand-new sun. It’s born each morning, it lives for the duration of one day, and in the evening it passes on, never to return again. As soon as the children are old enough to understand, the adults take them out at dawn and they say, ‘The sun has only one day. You must live this day in a good way, so that the sun won’t have wasted precious time.’ Acknowledging the preciousness of each day is a good way to live, a good way to reconnect with our basic joy.” – Pema Chödrön
“Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair”
~Khalil Gibran
Watching the sunrise with orange tinting the sky over the Blue Ridge Mountains from my bedroom window, where I sit warm beneath a comforter, I realize that sunrises are more significant than they used to be. More beautiful and precious. The sound of geese flying overhead now contribute their presence. I smile.
Living in California for most of my life, on the West coast of the U.S. and by the Pacific Ocean, the sunsets were what drew people out to gather on the top of the cliff where ocean waves crashed below. It was a ritual of silent celebration of the day ending in such a way.
Now it is the sunrises on the East side of the country that take my attention and place me in awe. Perhaps they are more important to me now, or have more meaning as an elder. It now means I have awoken to another embodied day to explore.
What a gift recognizing that all I have right now is this one day before me. More to the point, I only have this moment in which I am joyfully witnessing the sun rise over the mountain top, constantly relating with sky, mountains, and clouds in a dance of color and light.
Our species seems to crave “certainty” and “security” spending an inordinate amount of time trying to create it. Yet isn’t it the greatest cosmic joke that there is never any to be had. There was a moment a short time ago when I felt so “stuck” in old patterns of being that all I wanted to do was launch myself into a new adventure or a new environment. Running away from what could not be run away from. Myself and the available ever shifting moment.
We continually experience endings and beginnings, birth and death, illness and health, regeneration and disintegration. Everything shifting and changing in each moment within and without.
There is no “stuck place” we can hide even though we desperately wish at times to slow everything down yearning to escape into somewhere secure, not shifting so much and so often. Yet it is beyond our personal power to stop this on going dance of life. Nor would we really want to.
Everything constantly changes as nature shows us right before our eyes. The seasons, one following another are one simple example of this essential truth of impermanence and constant change.
I question why we celebrate a “New” human contrived calendar year when all is fresh every day, ripe with possibility, opportunity, beauty and yes at times great pain and suffering. It sometimes takes me by surprise that anything rigidly adhered to or structured too much creates a backlash of resistance within me.
Isn’t it our time as an elder to be free of that and live life as an improvisation?
Will we allow ourselves to be pulled back into what we perceive as “comfort and security” that beckons us with enticing illusions of secure sameness in our well rehearsed patterns. Hiding our light from others – but more importantly from ourselves.
Or shall we recognize that there are only a continuous series of unfolding moments to be explored, breathed into, celebrated and lived gratefully. The Navajo way…..
‘The sun has only one day. You must live this day in a good way, so that the sun won’t have wasted precious time.’
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through the end of 2024 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/31/24
The Wisdom of Not Knowing
Raleigh, Cream Golden Retriever/Photo by Gaye Abbott
I don’t know, what it means to be alive? I only know we need to enjoy it.”
~ Hanna Naude, Montagu, South Africa
As this year soon comes to an end we enter the holidays – a time of year that is ripe for magic, connection, laughter and play. If we could only let go of needing to “know”, embrace a genuine sense of uncertainty, and see through the eyes and perceptions of a child – or a dog.
What better time to remember that it is important to play every day. Our children taught us that, and now our grandchildren and animals. Remembering that we continue to hold that inner child inside of us no matter what age we are.
Don’t you love it when you do something, according to our cultural standards, that is “out of character” for a “person your age”?
In those moments there is so much freedom to express from a much more playful and authentic side of ourselves. After all we can “get away with it now” as we break away from societies narrow standards of behavior that keep us grieving for lost opportunities to simply be ourselves in any given moment.
Whether it is inner child’s play for elders, suddenly breaking out in dance or song in the safety of home (or right out in public!), spreading paint all over a canvas, wearing funny socks that show, or learning something new and not being particularly “good at it”, but having a great time trying.
All of this takes a willingness to enter the Kingdom of Not Knowing. In this kingdom there is spaciousness for creativity and living in wonder and possibility. That is where play is born ….and art is created. That is where we trust the unfolding of life moments and try on new endeavors and new friends. That is where we let go of any fear that tethers us to certainty.
That is where Control and Judgement take a vacation together to Bali to loosen up and learn to let go and swim with the dolphins….
“Why are we so obsessed with knowing everything? While there’s nothing wrong with knowledge and understanding, our insatiable desire to know and control all aspects of our lives often gets in our way of trying new things. There is no shame in not knowing, there is only freedom. An uncertain mind is an open mind. It is a mind which is curious and interested. It allows us to be creative and willing to live in a state of wonder and possibility, like children do. When we meet life with a genuine sense of uncertainty, we cease to project that which we think we know, and we instead begin to see life for what it truly is. It is life itself, unfolding before our eyes. “
Filmed in Montagu, South Africa by Reflections of Life. Featuring Hanna Naude.
Thank You for being a subscriber to Wildly Free Elder posts – or finding your way here through synchronicity! Through the end of 2024 there will be regular posts on the 15th and 30th of each month. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts, reflections and wild creative endeavors to inspire others. Gaye Abbott (click here)**
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page by clicking on the Blog Archives tab.
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/15/24
WILDLY FREE ELDER 