WILDLY FREE ELDER
The Artistry of Aging
Age With Mischief and Audacity
Your time on Earth is limited. Don’t try to “age with grace”, age with mischief, audacity, and a good story to tell!
Once upon a time we were young and full of dreaming into how we wanted our lives to be. We thought we had all the time in the world and that we could achieve “success”, be perfect at what we were doing, and certainly felt we knew what life was all about – whatever that meant at the time.
It was so hard to make mistakes as we thought somehow we were to be perfect in everything including our relationships and our appearance. It wasn’t until we found ourselves at the other end of the human life cycle that all those “mistakes” took on an entirely different form.
And now we can hopefully laugh when we make mistakes, understand we will have forgetful moments, and accept our on going dramatically changing outer appearance. Knowing that inside we still feel the same person we always have been ….and that we are still learning what life, passion and creativity is all about!
I have a 16-year-old granddaughter who is right smack in the middle of exerting her independence from parents and others who seem to want to set restrictions on her or interfere with her right to privacy, how she looks, or who she chooses as friends and how much time spent.
When I really think about it, as we get to the last stage of life, aren’t we doing the same thing? Severing our ties to the mainstream narrow perception of how an elder should act, think, be and exerting our independence.
For this is a time of life that is definitely filled with freedom to simply be the person you came in to be. Wrinkles and all. It is up to us to live as fully as possible while we have the ability to do so no matter what the culture says.
And that may mean getting up to some mischief, audacity in the face of restrictions, and some wildness thrown in here and there for good measure….with plenty of laughter by the way!
We must never lose the desire to do the things we truly love, because it is the saying ‘no’ to life that ages us. It’s not about aging. It’s about living.
“Go on living as fully as possible while we have the ability and the gifts. Why can I not go on until I drop? I don’t want to fade away. I’m not going to fade away God willing. Life is for living. To live life as fully as I am able to.” ~Jenny Jackson
This is the third story that we’ve filmed with Jenny. To watch the previous two films, see links below: All Cats Are Black – • You are BEAUTIFUL as You Are “Love, Mummy” – • FAMILIES are COMPLICATED I recently read…
“Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.” – Samuel Ullman
We all age – it is the normal process of living. But rather than being apprehensive about our aging bodies, let’s celebrate our growing perspective. Rather than worrying about our changing relationships, let’s embrace the opportunity to make new friends with people who share our interests. We must never lose the desire to do the things we truly love, because it is the saying ‘no’ to life that ages us. It’s not about ageing. It’s about living.
This film features Jenny Jackson. Filmed in Cape Town and Hermanus, South Africa.
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.
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 03/29/24
It’s Not Too Late – Feeling Deeply
Orchid at Biltmore Conservatory, Asheville, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott
Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them, listen to them. They are alive poems.
~Joy Harjo
Nature has always been, and always will be, a source of peace, tranquility, beauty, awe and sanctuary for me. Having always been connected since a child, when I come upon devastation perpetrated by humans I am wild with grief and a depth of sadness that is felt in the core of my being. What will my sons and grandchildren inherit after I have passed from this embodied life?
When I lived in Oregon for a few years there was so much evidence of logging. Clear cutting of whole swaths of forests. I know this has happened all over the world, but here it was so apparent even though the loggers attempted to hide it behind a screen of trees from the highways.
Hiking here, at times in the ancient old growth forest ripe with diversity, wildlife and a sense of the magic and mystery of timeless interconnection and community of species, I would feel the soul of my being connected with this vast wisdom of natures being.
Then on one hike in particular I remember all of a sudden a break in the forest where only stumps remained for as far as my eyes could see. No matter when these alive beings were taken I was, in those moments, filled with an intense sadness and grief.
It was like a knife into my heart for I could still hear the past sound of trees being felled, taken away from their home and their interconnected community where they had thrived for decades and decades. I have to believe that their history is still alive and vibrant. That someday they will rebirth themselves into other forms.
The devastation I witnessed here taken under the guise of short sighted profit without understanding the deeper connection that these trees provided. For the continued diversity of organisms, plants, animals and insects….even the soil itself, and certainly for human well being. The poetry of life had been ripped from its’ foundation.
I sometimes ask myself how I can face the massive wounding of nature without losing a piece of myself and hope for the future of the earth and all life upon it. Yet I know it is simply great love for the earth, at times fueled by my anger and grief, that will bring about the changes necessary to shift consciousness.
I strongly believe that It is through our everyday actions of kindness, humility, understanding and compassion in relating to others that we will reconnect to the natural world as interconnected partners instead of adversaries. As we allow ourselves to feel deeply may we rest in the grace of the world and be free…
Phoebe Barnard is a sustainability strategist, climate change ecologist, ecosystem scientist, conservation biologist, planner, policy translator, media and communications strategist and film co-producer. This beautiful, wise and powerful elder has wisdom to share with us. Please take some time to watch the short video below filmed in Washington state by Reflections of Life.
“It’s NOT OK to be upset. It’s NOT OK to be angry. It’s NOT OK to feel disappointed.
That’s what the world tells us. There’s been a movement to watch our thoughts and feelings, making sure that we’re positive at all times. We receive messages that we must shift these ‘bad’ feelings and find better ones. But when we do this, we close down and shut off parts of ourselves, suppressing the fullness of our emotions. To feel whole and be whole, we must honor all of it – good and bad. All emotions are beautiful and create a fullness and wholeness in our experience.
They are powerful forces that our bodies can use as fuel for action and healing. Our thoughts create reality, not the other way around. So when our reality doesn’t look the way we want it to and brings up emotions that are unpleasant to us, that is the message we are being given to start building a bridge between what is and what can be.
Taking time to be aware of our reactions, thoughts and emotions will bring us into a space of clarity and balance where we can make informed decisions guided and supported by our soul… decisions that will usher in release and healing for ourselves and all of life around us.“
Featuring Phoebe Barnard (phoebebarnard.com)
Filmed in Mount Vernon, Washington State, USA.
The poem read at the start of this film is called:
‘The Peace of Wild Things’ – by Wendell Berry.
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
Copyright (c) 2012 by Wendell Berry, reproduced by permission of Counterpoint
ADDENDUM:
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 03/15/24
Improvisation
Why focus on age, or even aging, when instead we have the option of living life as a series of improvisational moments.
That is actually all we have when it comes right down to it. Moments – and our choices, actions, and perceptions within them evolve our experience and quality of life which could in any moment take off in a myriad of different directions.
Then of course there are the challenges which we cannot escape. Some seem insurmountable when taken in a linear approach. Societies boxed in labels, choices and agendas or your own need for perfection or belonging.
However, when approached though spirals, curves, and sacred creativity with great curiosity and play, then something else entirely new is birthed. Spontaneity is born. Possibilities and opportunities emerge. Life becomes vastly interesting. Old patterns and habits are not as enticing.
Nature Art by Andy Goldsworthy
One might say that once you reach “a certain age” with professional and family obligations behind you that there is more room for improvisation. More room for wildness, play and creative exploration. But that depends on you.
With over two decades of exploring and experimenting with free form dance and contact improvisation those very experiences have left me with a yearning, perhaps a passionate lusting, to live my life from that place. But I often forget.
In those moments of a calling into the wild, whether alone, on a dance floor space, or with others, a complete and total presence to the unfolding moment is essential. A sensitivity to energy flowing or blocked. When to move, to touch, to make contact, to break contact is all done in the moment of being highly attuned to now. No spoken words are necessary.
I have never felt so free and unfettered. There is no right or wrong in these spaces of being. The only presence is breath, movement, energy, connection….and a willingness to surrender and explore.
This perception and way of living by surrendering into the moment to make your choices. Choosing the dance steps/movement/actions you will take, depending on the life music you are hearing right now and who may be there with you. This can be a very frightening way to live for many. Thus trust is an imperative in living an improvisational life.
Trust that the messages constantly whispered to you from body, heart and soul will override the minds constant caution and chatter. That in any given moment you may open into the miracle of one single moment of breath, loving, adventure, laughter, play, compassion – or even the deepest of sadness, grief, loss or anger.
The prescription here is openly feeling and accepting life moments now without writing a script of how it will be or should be. Expectations are banished to another far away land.
So why not start today. To be present to the unfolding of your life as if every moment mattered….for that is all we have.
| Mindful By Mary Oliver |
| Every day I see or hear something that more or less kills me with delight, that leaves me like a needle in the haystack of light. It is what I was born for— to look, to listen, to lose myself inside this soft world— to instruct myself over and over in joy, and acclamation. Nor am I talking about the exceptional,the fearful, the dreadful, the very extravagant— but of the ordinary, the common, the very drab, the daily presentations. Oh, good scholar, I say to myself, how can you help but grow wise with such teachings as these— the untrimmable light, of the world, the ocean’s shine, the prayers that are made out of grass? |
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 03/01/24
Sanctuary
Blue Ridge Mountain Sunset, Photography by Gaye Abbott
“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.”
~Kahlil Gibran
A light snow fell a few mornings ago here in Western N. Carolina and I am certain heavier in the Blue Ridge Mountains I gaze at every day. No prediction of this snow at all. In fact as it was falling I looked at the weather forecast which shows each hour and no snow was predicted. I say Mother Nature – 1; Weather Forecasters – 0
I imagine it is more challenging to forecast weather these days as it is so, in some cases drastically, different. Especially when there are micro-climates only a few miles apart. A friend 4 miles down the road had no snow. I remember while living in Vermont walking bare foot in the snow. What an amazing, tingling life affirming experience that was. Earth and water element combined to provide a wake up call for my soles.
However right now there is nothing blocking Spring’s rumblings underneath the ground with some early daffodils already up and a multitude of buds on the trees and plants. The birdsong has increased to the point where it is challenging to identify how many species are starting their mating rituals already.
Some warm days preceded this unexpected snowfall so I have to admit I have Spring Fever a bit. Dreaming of what I will plant on my screened in porch and what veggies, flowers and herbs I will choose this year. Nature girl I have always been for as long as I can remember.
There is healing, magic and mystery in the natural world. So much so that I won’t ever understand why so many ignore, or even worse destroy, it for short sighted profit. Without a healthy eco-system humans will vanish from this earth and we will lose the sanctuary that sustains us and the ecological diversity that not only enchants but is crucial to every single life form.
800-year-old oak
This is why I want to speak about simplicity, sanctuary and stewardship of the earth. Henry David Thoreau said in Walden:
“Our life is frittered away by detail. Simplify, simplify.”
Henry David Thoreau
There are millions of people that live in stewardship with the earth, regarding it as a sanctuary. That number is increasing. I would imagine that most who read this blog are among those. Every act we do whether planting gardens, growing our own food, helping to save species, conserving and protecting resources, living mindfully with less consumption and greed.
The possibilities and opportunities are unlimited to regenerate and live simply with the many challenges we face serving as catalysts for change. As humans heal, shift priorities, and raise connective and collective consciousness we are granted a window into the eternal and ever evolving beauty of what is always becoming.
Learning to savor life’s moments, instead of living in the past or worrying about the details in the future, is regenerative. After all we are never clear on how many moments we have left, especially if we are fortunate enough to be an elder.
I wonder if you have spent any time walking barefoot on the earth without any shoes as a barrier. Noticing how your body feels in those grounding sensual moments. Place your spine on the trunk of a tree and breathe in the flow of energy relaxing the entire nervous system. Dive into the scent of a flower by sticking your nose down into its’ depths and sensually connecting with why birds and bees do it. 🙂
Ride the crest of a wave with your body merging with the power of water rolling to shore never knowing when you may be taken underwater. Taken down into a whirlpool of wildly churning water, directly into heart stopping fears of imminent death. Until those same seemingly treacherous waters propel you up to the oxygen you are hungering for grounding your feet on the sandy bottom of the shoreline.
Walk along a trail pausing at the top of a mountain. In awe of what is spread out before you. Becoming still and silent so as to listen with full attention to the natural world spread out around you. Feeling the expansive almost mystical stillness wrap around you while attending to the wind playing with your hair.
Craggy Gardens, Blue Ridge Mountains of Western N. Carolina, Photo by Gaye Abbott
Wait until darkness descends on a clear night. Draping your body on the earth and gazing at the stars and planets in their own unique orbit unable to grasp the magnitude of the immensity of multiple galaxies and our place in the complexity.
These are moments to savor. They nourish and sustain us so that we may be in service to the regeneration of a breathing earth filled with mystery and magic – and all life that lives upon it.
Without them we are only half living…..
“For those who have experienced the joy of being alone with nature there is really little need for me to say much more; for those who have not, no words of mine can even describe the powerful, almost mystical knowledge of beauty and eternity that come, suddenly, and all unexpected.”
~Jane Goodall
“Synopsis: Maria was a romantic, animal-loving, dreamy child who, growing up, had a hard time conforming to the demands associated with the trajectory towards “a normal life”. As a young adult she became depressed, and was encouraged by her therapist to go for walks in the forest. The myriad of funny-looking twigs and sticks she found along the way immediately put her on a path to recovery. Now, 25 years later, she’s a celebrated “twig poet” whose art is shown in galleries throughout Sweden. When a climate related crisis strikes the forest where she lives and works, she’s forced into a new type of creativity in order to save the place that once upon a time saved her.”
Filmed in: Värmland, Sweden Featuring: Maria “Vildhjärta” Westerberg & Johannes Söderqvist (https://vildhjarta.net/) and Martin Jentzen (https://www.jentzen.se/) Produced, filmed and edited by: Mattias Olsson for Campfire Stories (https://www.campfire-stories.org/) Sound mix: Boris Laible (https://www.borislaible.com/)
The films of the series “Something Beautiful for the World” explore how small acts of love and kindness have the potential to ripple out and change the world, touching hearts and minds in ways that we could never begin to imagine. We’ll be sharing a total of 12 short films, from across five continents – releasing one per month for the whole year of 2024 – four from each filmmaker.
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/23/24
Seeing Things Differently – Part 2
For Part 1: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/2024/02/02/seeing-things-differently-part-1/
Had a spell been cast? A veil dropped over her so that nothing was very clear. But remember reader she was not aware of how much she was not seeing. Perhaps none of us really are.
It wasn’t until one day she sat underneath a tree she was especially fond of, a very old spreading elder oak, whom she had visited for many years. This oak was known to bring clarity to humans who sat beneath her branches. Closing her eyes she listened and soon she noticed that the tree was breathing with her and opening a vast space to explore.
This was on the day of Imbolc, a Gaelic word meaning ‘In the Belly,” that midpoint between Winter Solstice and Vernal Equinox. A pregnant time where beneath the earths’ fecund underground growth there was the promise of clarity and new life ready to burst forth if you looked, listened and felt closely. Paying very close attention with all of your senses.
The Oak knew this elder well as she had been coming here regularly during her very short in-tree-years of 75 human years. It was up to her to bring some magic to her friend and lift the veil to reveal how the world really was for a short period of time. Only nano seconds in tree time. This ancient Oak intentionally incorporated the wisdom of the ages with deliberate action by tapping into the vast intelligent and innate mycorrhizal communication network under the earth.
A trees magic only goes so far but her wisdom is great when connected with the wise intelligence of the interconnected Earth community. In that wisdom she gave the woman a split screen so that part of what she saw was dim and non-distinct as she had been seeing, and the other part was crystal clear with light, color and distinctions.
“To me, magic isn’t some kind of special power or a miracle, but rather it is intentionally incorporating the wisdom of the ages with deliberate action. It’s practical magic.” Mary Plantwalker
This experience was more than about physical vision. It held the promise of untangling very old patterns that were keeping this woman “in the dark” about what a powerful time elderhood was and who she was now. Not alone, but connected to a community of embodied souls who were living in possibility and abundance. Who were innovative and creative.
In those moments the world opened up and shed its’ unfathomable secrets for the trees friend. Allowing the spark of life to touch and imagination to soar. To open eyes to what was right before her, far away, and hidden in the mystery. It was staggering, and at times she had to rest her “seeing” to take it all in. When she closed her eyes even the darkness was more defined, sharper, clearer – another domain to be explored.
She became even more curious as her way of seeing the world expanded in distinct clarity, brilliant color and abundant light. But in those moments she also became distracted by the dimness and haziness that she could still perceive. This energetic space of insulation where she over protected herself.
The difference was startling. So much so that it brought her into silent awe, and she must admit a bit of grieving for all that she had not been seeing clearly.
In those moments her curiosity expanded and she was flooded by questions such as,
Why do dogs get the “zoomies” and cats purr? What does the hummingbird communicate to the flower as it sips nectar from within? What do the ancient mountains have to tell us? Can we hear and feel a tree breathing? Does the Universe have an edge?
Are there dragons?!
DRAGON LADY MYSTERY & MAGIC SCHOOL
It didn’t seem to be important that she found answers to these questions, simply that she was intensely curious about the world around her. What felt most important was that she was opening up to the vast and interwoven world in an attentive and expanded way. She wanted more of that….
Very soon there came a day when this particular elder decided she would apply some practical magic by deliberately seeking out a very wise and skilled master who was known to permanently restore full clarity to seeing. Literally taking away the clouded lens through which she perceived the world around her. He would instruct her that it was her responsibility to find guides who would teach her about seeing things differently from a new perspective.
She realized in an instant that most of us have choice as to the lens through which we see ourselves, our lives and the world around us, as well as where we place our attention and focus. This insight was vividly shown to her now that she had a new lens to see through.
One of mystery, magic and stunning beauty. As well as the inevitable challenges and struggles of being human where she was to become more acutely aware of the possibilities and opportunities that lay in wait for her and that she was to learn from.
A life of “what If’s” instead of “this is the way it is.” Accessing her own innate intelligence, creativity, curiosity and wisdom instead of coloring within the lines of society and culture. She felt deep within the core of her elder being that she could access her, up to now, hidden genius and step out into the world with kindness, compassion, love, passion, play, humor……and a wee bit of magic.
Perhaps she would start a mystery and magic school for dragons!
MYSTERIES, YES
by Mary Oliver
Truly, we live with mysteries too marvelous to be understood.
How grass can be nourishing in the mouths of lambs.
How rivers and stones are forever in allegiance with gravity while we ourselves dream of rising.
How two hands touch and the bonds will never be broken.
How people come, from delight or the scars of damage, to the comfort of a poem.
Let me keep my distance, always, from those who think they have the answers.
Let me keep company always with those who say, “Look! and laugh in astonishment and bow their heads.
Oak Wood Dragon – Photo by Cathi Aanwyn
*ADDENDUM FROM GAYE ABBOTT: This two part story was inspired by my very recent cataract surgery on both eyes with one week in between. To say I was stunned by all that I was not seeing in that week between eye surgeries is an understatement. I had adapted to seeing in much reduced clarity, color and light. Even glasses had not completely corrected my very near sighted vision to clarity. But I was not aware how much I was not “seeing”.
I am still in the stages of immense gratitude, awe and wonder about how clear everything is and how stunning the colors, textures and variation of light I can now perceive. I have 20/20 vision in both eyes, something I have never had in my entire life without glasses or contacts.
Now I have what a good friend calls “bionic eyesight” thanks to magical implanted lenses and can safely drive at night. However, I have lost the ability to see rainbow circles around oncoming headlights and circles of light around the moon and candle flames, something that an elder friend of mine and I declared to be a special magical elder ability that not everyone could see. And though I need readers for very close, which I never needed before….it was a tradeoff worth making!
These days I am often found silently looking at the world around me with astonishment. Little did I know that this miraculous cataract removal would also shift me in other ways of perceiving my life as an elder.
Most of us have a choice as to the lens through which we see our lives and the world around us as well as where we place our attention and focus. It is my hope that future posts will reveal these insights. I invite you to walk with me this year and share your own insights and stories….GA
NOTE: The two magical dragon images on this post are digitally created by the artist via AI and editing via photoshop. The Oak Dragon image was taken by Kathi Aanwyn. I fell in love with them……and after all it is the year of the Dragon as of today!
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/09/24
Seeing Things Differently – Part 1
Blue Ridge Mountain Sunset, Weaverville, Western N. Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott
We come into this world to be astounded. By the magic, mystery, beauty and pure miracle of our being here. Yet that very purpose is often disrupted by the every day ups and downs of life as a human being. Let’s face it, being human can be a struggle and a rough ride.
One such female, a sensitive being, abruptly landed into this high stimulus world over seven decades ago. Into a lifetime with highly tuned visual and kinesthetic senses, which can indeed be a tad disorienting. Attuned to and sensitive to energy she was constantly being bombarded.
Learning to protect those sensitivities meant inhabiting a world of her own. An inner one, where communing with nature regularly, having an invisible imaginary friend and reading in the middle of the night with a flashlight under the covers took up lots of childhood time.
Shy and reluctant to step forward into the life she had been given, the fact that as a young child she was given glasses to wear for being severely near sighted was a mirror for her dependence on that safe inner world. But then there is so much more to physically “seeing” now isn’t there?
As she matured she tested how it would feel to step outside of the mainstream culture into adventure and creative endeavors. However, the comfort of the close in inner world where she could see clearly and not be “exposed” kept drawing her back.
Eventually “coming out” and connecting with others outside of this private inner inhabited world turned into a gradual introduction to how much fun and rewarding it could be to focus on enhancing others well being. With long and successful endeavors in these healing and teaching domains this creative and gifted female would have been labeled a “witch”. In other times she would have been ostracized, or even worse burned at the stake. Many of us were.
There were challenges of course, not the least of which was “burn out” from taking care of others ahead of her own self care. A potential pitfall of our sex, (men have there own pits to fall into), when taken to the extreme as she was compelled to do. We all have our stories about how we formed such patterns and hers is probably not much different from others, so I leave you the reader to simply create your own story line here.
Gifts of insightful empathic awareness and sensitive knowing, intuitive perception, healing hands and close connection to nature often brought her into conflict with the world operating around her. Somehow it felt like never “fitting in” even in the younger years where it seemed so important to do so.
Little did she know then that “fitting in” meant a sacrifice of being willing to fully express the best of who she was meant to be. A box constructed to inhibit that wild girl who simply wanted to be free of fear and create the steps to her own life dance.
It took years to accept the abilities and gifts bestowed upon her. Learning to step out of self imposed restrictions laid upon a foundation of fear she innovated, traveled, studied, created, loved and danced her way through the years valiantly accepting that the very hard dark parts were something she would learn from….eventually.
She claimed more of her own unique expression and felt at peace with who she was and the simplicity of the life she lead offering love, kindness, compassion and humor to others at every opportunity. Yet all that she had contributed during her lifetime no longer had much meaning as she entered into the elder years.
Something felt different and had been changing. There was a sense that a force was pulling her into a hazy place where power, creativity and perception were at risk. A veil over the immediacy of the mystery, magic and stunning beauty of this world she still lived in.
Without noticing the dimness that crept into daily life, and the extra effort it took to see things clearly, she simply adapted. Living in a shrinking world feeling cut off from the experience of passion, yet not really grasping the full extent of it. An elder invisible to herself and the culture she supposedly belonged to.
Where did the passion and desire to explore go? Was it buried under layers of social and cultural conditioning especially since her silver hairs marked her as elder?
Was she unknowingly placing a barrier around herself to protect from the rampant fear and anxiety that humans are feeling globally?
What was she not “seeing” that was real to her soul?
TO BE CONTINUED….
Find out what happens by making certain you are notified when Part 2 arrives! (See below)
Meanwhile take a few minutes to watch the video below on Being Beautiful. I think you will enjoy it?
Stuff everywhere! Bags, clothes, cars, iPads. We love our stuff. And over time, we’ve come to believe that this ‘stuff’ is what defines who we are. But our possessions will never fully satisfy the inmost desires of our soul. They never have. And they are not about to start. In fact, most of the time, it distracts us from the very things that bring meaning to our lives.
Instead, our lives are defined by the choices we make. It is these choices that define our character, our authentic self. So choose wisely. Do not miss out by placing importance on things instead of people. Pursue beauty, hope, love and kindness. Pursue opportunity to improve this world for somebody else. Let’s be simply beautiful.
Filmed in Grahamstown, South Africa by Reflections of Life. Featuring Theo du Plessis.
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 02/02/24
LISTENING….
Oil Painting/CREATION OF HOPE, By Jay Bowen
“We are all indigenous to the Earth. There is no such thing as a non-indigenous human being.” ~Jay Bowen
The web of connection on this amazing planet we live on has always been there, but perhaps not as much in our awareness as now with the technology we presently possess. Within seconds we can know what is happening on the other side of the world. Granted this can often be a mixed blessing.
But what is apparent more and more is that we are all one “family” connected by the same human needs as well as intimately connected with all other life in nature and the cosmos.
“When the world discovers we are all just one family we will all be better off.”
~80-year-old native woman elder, Upper Skagit Tribe.
As elders we hopefully have learned to listen which we have discovered is an art that is crucial to understanding, compassion, empathy, respect and awareness. Not thinking of what we are going to say in response, but simply being still, quiet and listening from an open heart to what others are conveying.
“Surrounded by My Friends” by Jay Bowen
It is when we practice this that we find we don’t have as much to say. That when we interrupt someone or are thinking about what we are going to say while they are talking – we lose connection and the opportunity to fully listen with our soul and hearts.
A few weeks ago now I had an interaction with a man in the parking lot of my grocery store. I had finished my shopping and was loading my car with bags when I realized I was blocking the way of the man right beside me who wanted to get into his car door next to me. I asked him if he wanted me to move and he said in a highly accented voice that no, he could wait.
I asked him where he came from and it turned out he was from the Ukraine. It was at that point that I became his very active and present listening partner as he answered my questions about his country and conveyed to me what his experience has been of the on going war there.
How much the Ukranian people want freedom and their own country. Of how he has changed in his views towards a more assertive stance with the Russian invasion. How friends and relatives have died and of his visits there in the last two years since he relocated to the United States.
In those moments I not only learned from a first hand experience of this man of the Ukraine, but I felt extremely fortunate to have connected with him. My offer of more water for his journey home to S. Carolina where he and his wife have their own business was thankfully accepted.
This was an experience of listening from the soul and heart completely focused on what this gentle man had to impart to me. He carries on his work with refugees from Ukraine ….and in those moments of listening I am left feeling a part of his family.
Who’s not family?
This last film for the year from Reflections of Life (previously Green Renaissance) based in South Africa, touched me deeply. It was actually filmed here in the U.S.in the state of Washington.
This will be the last post in the series of “Ordinary Beauty” at Wildly Free Elder for 2023.
“Humanity is one big, eight-billion-person family that lives together on Earth – born on the same planet, covered by the same skies, gazing at the same stars, breathing the same air. We may speak different languages and belong to different cultures, but we are all part of the same human family. And like any other family, we are all unique – we have our own likes and dislikes, our own temperaments, our own experiences – but that doesn’t make us any less a part of our family. “Humanity is one big, eight-billion-person family that lives together on Earth – born on the same planet, covered by the same skies, gazing at the same stars, breathing the same air. We may speak different languages and belong to different cultures, but we are all part of the same human family. And like any other family, we are all unique – we have our own likes and dislikes, our own temperaments, our own experiences – but that doesn’t make us any less a part of our family.
In a world where kindness knows no boundaries, we have the power to create a tapestry of unity, where every person is valued, and the bonds of our human family are strengthened by the threads of empathy and respect. It is time we start to acknowledge that we are all in this together. The sooner we start to greet each other with open arms and open hearts, the sooner we will be able to make a change.
‘We are all related. And when you become aware of that, you realize how important it is to take care of your sisters and brothers.’ – Jay Bowen, Upper Skagit Tribe. Filmed in Skagit Valley Washington, USA. Featuring Jay Bowen (https://jaybowen-art.com/wordpress/) “
All of our films are made possible through the generous support of our patrons. To be part of this journey : https://www.patreon.com/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 : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcPPUszZ4-7yzZNgAAYwJjg/join
Who is Reflections of Life? We are Justine and Michael (previously known as Green Renaissance). We use our passion for filmmaking 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 Editing – by Justine du Toit Sound mix – by Tamryn Breakey Extra special thanks to Sonic Yogi (Jonathan) for providing the opening music track of this film.
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” has been a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood.
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 if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/29/23
A Sense of Wonder
Photography by National Geographic
What heightens or restores a sense of wonder for you?
When this image filtered through to me I was completely taken by the same childlike wonder that this small child must of felt in meeting this very tall person of color and bright clothing, decorative embellishments and even two feathers pointing up to the sky.
I wonder what they said to each other? Or did they speak at all with words?
You may notice that I have used gender neutral pronouns. At first glance I gender identified them, then as I consciously gazed into the image I realized that I wasn’t certain and that naming and paying attention to gender took away from the magic and wonder. In fact, each person could be either. Does it matter?
Photography by National Geographic
We may view these two as vastly different in appearance, culture and age. Yet they share with each other an intimate connection as two humans on this amazing planet Earth. All part of the same human family.
I wonder what you are feeling now as you gaze at this image.
What wondrous story will you create?
“NO, we don’t need more sleep.
It’s our soul’s that are tired,
not our bodies,
We need nature
We need magic
We need adventure,
We need freedom,
We need truth,
We need stillness,
We don’t need more sleep,
We need to wake up and live.
~Brook Hampton
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
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 if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/22/23
An Openness For Mystery
Blue Ridge Mountain Rainbow, Photography by Gaye Abbott, 2022
“We are all born with openness for mystery”
~Br. David Steindl-Rast
This time of year often seems to be taken over with holiday preparations, gatherings and delectable food. Yet, if we pay attention we may notice there is a yearning within to simply stop and connect with the ordinary beauty, mystery and sacredness that this time of year reveals.
A waning of light leading up to Winter Solstice, or an expansion of light if you are about to launch into Summer Solstice, next week. Both teach us lessons in being and connection as we enter into the natural order of seasons beyond the hustle and bustle and apart from pain, suffering and grief.
Opening to our innate childlike curiosity and openness to the mystery of life unfolding…..and entering into the flow and magic of fully giving and receiving.
Blue Ridge Mountain Rainbow, Photography by Gaye Abbott, 2022
How many unseen mysteries are out of our direct perception? I don’t know about you but rainbows are always magical to me and make me smile every single time. Somewhere over the rainbow….and pots of gold at the end of them – but there is actually no end!
The rainbow in the image above takes the form of a multicolored circular arc of refracted light, internal reflection and dispersion of light in water droplets.
Yet rainbows are full circles! The observer normally sees only an arc formed by illuminated droplets above the ground, and centered on a line from the Sun to the observer’s eye. The earth simply gets in the way of us seeing the full circle.
This beauty of light and color holds magic and mystery. Curiously I wonder how many other every day mysteries are right before us, yet we pass them by or don’t take the time or interest to explore their many facets and depths.
Are we living in a dirge of black and white rather than in a spectrum of color?
I invite you to watch the trailer below, and then the complete film, Gratitude Revealed, filmed by film maker, Louie Schwartzberg. A perfect time to be reminded of simply being alive and living a more meaningful and connected full spectrum color life of gratitude, compassion, connection, creative passion, and love. Each one of us holds the power to shift consciousness….
Featuring music by the band Mantragold.
Official Website: https://gratituderevealed.com
Watch the Full Length Film: https://gratituderevealed.com/watch-film
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
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 if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/15/23
Circles of Motion
Eagle Poem
By Joy Harjo
To pray you open your whole self
To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon
To one whole voice that is you.
And know there is more
That you can’t see, can’t hear;
Can’t know except in moments
Steadily growing, and in languages
That aren’t always sound but other
Circles of motion.
Like eagle that Sunday morning
Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky
In wind, swept our hearts clean
With sacred wings.
We see you, see ourselves and know
That we must take the utmost care
And kindness in all things.
Breathe in, knowing we are made of
All this, and breathe, knowing
We are truly blessed because we
Were born, and die soon within a
True circle of motion,
Like eagle rounding out the morning
Inside us.
We pray that it will be done
In beauty.
In beauty.
From In Mad Love and War. Copyright © 1990 by Joy Harjo. Reprinted with kind permission of Wesleyan University Press.
When reaching the elder stage of life many of us realize with acute awareness that each morning that we wake up to an in breath/out breath, and open our eyes…. it is a gift.
What if the greatest act of creativity comes in this final stage of life. Knowing that how we spend our days, our moments, matters more than it ever has.
No purpose in holding back on our dreams or our tears, our love or our laughter, our artistry or our need to simply be still and at peace….even the challenges we face. But there is every purpose in stewarding abundant curiosity, conscious acts of kindness and compassion, and playing with our unique creativity
Indeed we were born, and die soon within a true circle of motion. One hundred years from now all that has been in our lives will be swept clean making room for new life. What will remain is the moon, sun, earth and sky.
We are a spark in the eternal circle of life, death, and regeneration. Time to open our whole being into the brilliant sunset time of our lives…..
Sunset Over Blue Ridge Mountains, NC/Phtography by Gaye Abbott, 12/2023
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
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 if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/8/23
WILDLY FREE ELDER 