The kids recently reminded me that it’s less than a month until my half-birthday. I will be halfway through my 44th year - which means I will be halfway to 45 which you don’t have to point out is halfway through my forties, and therefore, halfway through the decade to 50.
And we all know that 50 is halfway to 100...which means - with a little luck - I am about halfway through my life.
Whose bright idea was this half-birthday thing, anyway?
We don't celebrate half-birthdays with much more than an extra hug these days. But when your child has a near-Christmas birthday, it's nice to find an excuse to celebrate them outside of the holiday season.
So, that is how we got to this place of noticing that I am inching along closer to 45, 50 and 100 years old.
I suppose it is the same journey for all of us. From the day we are born, we are moving forward toward death. It is the one thing we can all be sure of.
I suppose that is what makes us all afraid, and why our culture puts a lot of energy into trying to help us forget where we are headed. Perhaps that is why we keep ourselves so busy, constantly racing around, accumulating things and experiences, trying to hit benchmarks of success. As if these benchmarks (possessions, progeny, productivity) will prove that we have been worthy of our lives.
I am in the thick of it - wanting to provide rich childhood experiences for my kids, wanting to establish my coaching business for long-term sustainability, wanting to live comfortably...the list goes on.
But what happens if I stop and appreciate my life as it is in this moment?
A cold morning outside, and I am curled up on the couch with the cat sleeping against my leg. I am toasty warm, typing away in the quiet of the early morning. There is no place else that I need to be. Unfolded laundry waits patiently in a basket near my feet.
Soon, the rest of the day will begin - with breakfast, parent-teacher conferences, errands, emails, calls. I sense its impending arrival, and I make a mental note not to hold any of it too tightly.
In this moment, forty-five and a half no longer seems to be looming. Instead it holds a nonlinear sense of possibility and contentment.
What is your relationship to the passing of time?
And we all know that 50 is halfway to 100...which means - with a little luck - I am about halfway through my life.
Whose bright idea was this half-birthday thing, anyway?
We don't celebrate half-birthdays with much more than an extra hug these days. But when your child has a near-Christmas birthday, it's nice to find an excuse to celebrate them outside of the holiday season.
So, that is how we got to this place of noticing that I am inching along closer to 45, 50 and 100 years old.
I suppose it is the same journey for all of us. From the day we are born, we are moving forward toward death. It is the one thing we can all be sure of.
I suppose that is what makes us all afraid, and why our culture puts a lot of energy into trying to help us forget where we are headed. Perhaps that is why we keep ourselves so busy, constantly racing around, accumulating things and experiences, trying to hit benchmarks of success. As if these benchmarks (possessions, progeny, productivity) will prove that we have been worthy of our lives.
I am in the thick of it - wanting to provide rich childhood experiences for my kids, wanting to establish my coaching business for long-term sustainability, wanting to live comfortably...the list goes on.
But what happens if I stop and appreciate my life as it is in this moment?
A cold morning outside, and I am curled up on the couch with the cat sleeping against my leg. I am toasty warm, typing away in the quiet of the early morning. There is no place else that I need to be. Unfolded laundry waits patiently in a basket near my feet.
Soon, the rest of the day will begin - with breakfast, parent-teacher conferences, errands, emails, calls. I sense its impending arrival, and I make a mental note not to hold any of it too tightly.
In this moment, forty-five and a half no longer seems to be looming. Instead it holds a nonlinear sense of possibility and contentment.
What is your relationship to the passing of time?
 | Jessica Curtis is a professional life coach who helps people cultivate intention and live from a place of meaning and authenticity. If you think you could benefit from working with Jessica or want to invite her to work with your group, reach out to start a conversation. |
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