IN THE AUTUMN OF LIFE

When I divide my life into four parts, regardless of years, it is childhood, early adulthood, mature adulthood, and the elder stage.  There are times for each stage. While they might seem arbitrary or fixed to others, I link them to transitions, moving from one stage to another. The seasons of change.   My childhood ended at 18 when I left home for college and never returned to live there, and adulthood began 3 years later when I got married at age 21.  That stage ended around age 37 when I had three children, finished my second graduate school with two more degrees, and became self-employed.  Mature adulthood, with all of its attendant responsibilities, began around age 54.  That lasted until age 74 when I retired from full-time employment and it became clear I had entered the last one-fourth of my life. The elder stage began and now, 12 years of being an elder is fine with me.

Autumn is synonymous in many places with brilliant colors, a slowing down, a change in the weather, a time of letting go and going inward or underground.  In my internal calendar, I associate October and November, with cooler days, warm blankets at night, the smells, tastes, and sounds of celebrations.

Trees and leaves, apples, and fresh pressed cider.  It’s time to make a pie or apple crisp and welcome the wonderful aroma of baking escaping from the oven, testing my olfactory abilities. I cooked a pot of apples for applesauce and used Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond’s recipe. She is a hoot with her details and laughter is good for the soul at any stage. She said this may be the only recipe where she does not recommend using butter.  I use a variety of sources for recipes that appeal to me and when I search for a recipe for whatever, the first three choices are usually reliable. Then it’s a matter of discerning any important differences, choosing one of the three, or going to our recipe file and looking under different categories for recipes we have saved.  Who knew I would enjoy cooking and being in the kitchen at this stage?  To say that Susie likes it is an understatement. One of my favorite cookbooks is “Twelve Months of Monastery Soups.”

We are moving swiftly toward Halloween, All Saints, and All Souls Days.  November 1 and 2 here in Mexico are important as Dia de los Muertos. Day of the Dead is a two-day holiday that reunites the living and dead. Families create ofrendas (Offerings) to honor their departed family members who have died. These altars are decorated with flowers (marigolds), religious symbols, and the favorite foods and drinks of the one being honored. The offerings are believed to encourage visits from the land of the dead as the departed souls hear their prayers, smell their foods, and join in the celebrations! We are planning to visit a cemetery here in San Miguel and join in this rich tradition of celebrating our loved ones no longer with us.

November in the U.S. is the month of the national Holiday of Thanksgiving, celebrated on the fourth Thursday.  For me, gratitude is present year-round and every day.  Each day at this stage is a gift and a bonus day to make of it whatever I choose, this day, this hour. I agree wholeheartedly with the first part of what Annie Dillard says in “The Writing Life.”  She writes:

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing.”  The second part, about a schedule being a “mock-up of reason and order”  not so much, although there is a rhythm to my days  I may consider dates and times when I look at a calendar, and how I want to invest or spend my hours and days.  Being in this latter stage of luxurious leisure to be and do as I choose is richly rewarding. My days are full. I am present. I can think and walk,  read and write, respond and reach out, and make meaningful connections with family and friends.  I know these days will end. Whether they end gradually or suddenly at this stage makes little difference to me. I celebrate who I am, and where I am with what I have.

“Every moment there are a million miracles happening around you: a flower blossoming, a bird tweeting, a bee humming, a raindrop falling, a snowflake wafting along the clear evening air. There is magic everywhere. If you learn how to live it, life is nothing short of a daily miracle.” Source: Inner Engineering: A Yogi’s Guide to Joy​​  Thanks to JamesClear.com for sharing this quote.