The Last Third of Life

[eagle1462010]

 

[Sonny Clark]

Learn to appreciate life. Look forward to new experiences. Pass along the years of experience and knowledge to others. Enjoy the stress free life without worrying about taking care of kids. Enjoy your new found freedom. Meet people, make friends, get involved in activities or hobbies. Have friends over for a cook-out, have a community bake sale, go fishing, camping, travel, and see the world that you've never been able to experience. Be thankful each day that you wake up above ground. Put the past behind you and live for today. Get excited over something, laugh, and enjoy the time you have left. I'll be glad to counsel you if you want it. It's a free service. I do it for others all the time.

And while I appreciate that offer, it occurs to me how absolutely pathetic I probably sound! Hmmmmm....one more thing.

Non-sense. Believe me, I've heard it all, many times over. You would sound very normal and genuinely concerned, as everyone is. Feeling like there's nothing left to do is normal, and you're not the first to experience those feelings, and you certainly wont be the last. Once we reach a certain age, time plays tricks on our minds. All of us go through a period of doubt, uncertainty, confusion, and we question our real purpose. We feel no longer useful or wanted. We feel empty and without purpose. These are all normal feelings and emotions that come with age. It's akin to the teenage years when we really don't know what we want to do in life. As teens, we look for identity and a sense of belonging. We worry if we're going to measure up to our peers, and whether or not our parents will be proud of us.

Human emotions and feelings of uncertainty are common, and everyone has periods in their lives that brings them to the forefront. Believe it or not, you're normal and feel the same things that everyone else feels at one time or another. Talking about it and getting a different perspective often times reveals just how normal we are compared to everyone else. You'll be fine, I have no doubt. As the saying goes, "this too shall pass".

 

[Ernie S.]

I decided to start a business in my last third. It's more physically demanding than it would have been 25 years ago, but it keeps me active.

I decided years ago about my final arrangements.

Burn my body. I'll be done with it and for God's sake, don't put even my ashes in the ground. Cemeteries are a waste of space that could be used by the living.

When my son passed, I tried to start a movement to get people to buy picnic parcels instead of cemetery plots. The idea was to have a large park where we could get together to celebrate the lives of our loved ones without the need to act reverently or worry about walking across a grave.

I got some people interested, but this was before the internet and I couldn't reach enough people to make it work.

 

[westwall]

I am well into my last third of my life. I enjoy myself and my family. I drink good wine, I drink some damned good Scotch, I listen to music, I read, in other words I live my life to the fullest possible. At the end of the day I have a few more aches than I used too, but so what? We are on this planet for a vanishingly short period. ENJOY IT!

I'll be damned, you and I posted at almost the same second, but excluding the fucking part, our posts are almost identical....

wow.....

Copy cat with a fast hard drive speed..

I was first by a minute!

Neenerneenerneener!!!

 

[Ernie S.]

 

[westwall]

I decided to start a business in my last third. It's more physically demanding than it would have been 25 years ago, but it keeps me active.

I decided years ago about my final arrangements.

Burn my body. I'll be done with it and for God's sake, don't put even my ashes in the ground. Cemeteries are a waste of space that could be used by the living.

When my son passed, I tried to start a movement to get people to buy picnic parcels instead of cemetery plots. The idea was to have a large park where we could get together to celebrate the lives of our loved ones without the need to act reverently or worry about walking across a grave.

I got some people interested, but this was before the internet and I couldn't reach enough people to make it work.

That sounds like a really great idea Ernie.

 

[Statistikhengst]

I am well into my last third of my life. I enjoy myself and my family. I drink good wine, I drink some damned good Scotch, I listen to music, I read, in other words I live my life to the fullest possible. At the end of the day I have a few more aches than I used too, but so what? We are on this planet for a vanishingly short period. ENJOY IT!

I'll be damned, you and I posted at almost the same second, but excluding the fucking part, our posts are almost identical....

wow.....

Copy cat with a fast hard drive speed..

I was first by a minute!

Neenerneenerneener!!!

 

[boedicca]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

 

[westwall]

I'll be damned, you and I posted at almost the same second, but excluding the fucking part, our posts are almost identical....

wow.....

Copy cat with a fast hard drive speed..

I was first by a minute!

Neenerneenerneener!!!

 

[eagle1462010]

 

[jan]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

 

[eagle1462010]

 

[boedicca]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

Oh, Puh-leeze. So much existential angst.

A simple recipe for enjoying life at any stage:

- A loving, nurturing relationships (family and friends)
- Intellectual stimulation
- Meaningful activity
- Connection with one's local community
- Exercise
- A Healthy diet
- Restful sleep
- A spiritual practice

 

[jan]

[/QUOTE]

Unfortunately, this image isn't coming through for me...I get a blank screen. Thanks for posting to the thread anyway eagle.

 

[jan]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

Oh, Puh-leeze. So much existential angst.

A simple recipe for enjoying life at any stage:

- A loving, nurturing relationships (family and friends)
- Intellectual stimulation
- Meaningful activity
- Connection with one's local community
- Exercise
- A Healthy diet
- Restful sleep
- A spiritual practice

We are in the philosophy forum.

 

[eagle1462010]

Unfortunately, this image isn't coming through for me...I get a blank screen. Thanks for posting to the thread anyway eagle.[/QUOTE]
I'm sorry for that.........It's working on mine.........

It says..................

Don't Worry about the things you can't control.
Whatever will be will be...............

 

[boedicca]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

Oh, Puh-leeze. So much existential angst.

A simple recipe for enjoying life at any stage:

- A loving, nurturing relationships (family and friends)
- Intellectual stimulation
- Meaningful activity
- Connection with one's local community
- Exercise
- A Healthy diet
- Restful sleep
- A spiritual practice

We are in the philosophy forum.

Philosophy should inform one's way of life so that one enjoys it.

You can spend your time "riding the decline" and feeling sorry for yourself; or you can decide to enjoy the time you have and quit obsessing. It's up to you.

I've described what my approach is going to be.

 

[jan]

So...what's the point of the last third of life anyway? Planning a good death? To die well...what does that really even mean?

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

Oh, Puh-leeze. So much existential angst.

A simple recipe for enjoying life at any stage:

- A loving, nurturing relationships (family and friends)
- Intellectual stimulation
- Meaningful activity
- Connection with one's local community
- Exercise
- A Healthy diet
- Restful sleep
- A spiritual practice

We are in the philosophy forum.

Philosophy should inform one's way of life so that one enjoys it.

You can spend your time "riding the decline" and feeling sorry for yourself; or you can decide to enjoy the time you have and quit obsessing. It's up to you.

I've described what my approach is going to be.

Interesting choice of words I think...there is a decline going on. We spend our lives accumulating and towards the end (or in that last third) we give it all away and downsize. What was it all for? Why the incline only to lead to a decline? Why can't we just ride the incline until the moment of death and then look forward to the fast drop like that of a rollercoaster? I mean, what a rush, right?

Why do we still have the same societal standards and norms that were in place 100 years ago? Why must there be a decline at all?

 

[HenryBHough]

As one well into the final quarter.....

The first half of that FQ is for play. For travel. For doing the stuff you wanted to but felt you couldn't afford.

The last half of the FQ is for putting things in order. Or for making sure those who deserved to be screwed over actually do get screwed over. Sometimes that's difficult.

The hardest part is working out how to die the very day your lawyer tells you bankruptcy is all that's left.

Without forcing the issue.

Trips this year will include:

Peru
New England
England
Israel/Jordan
Possibly Rome or Istanbul

Want any pictures from those places? I do take requests and never charge for them.

 

[boedicca]

I think you need a hobby.

Patronize much?

A hobby won't solve the mysteries of life...it may help me forget about them though. However, I'd rather not...I'd rather feel whatever I'm feeling about whatever it is that's on my mind than to drown it in alcohol or drown the feelings out with busy work.

Getting to the other side of an issue means traveling through it and feeling all that needs to be felt along the way.

Oh, Puh-leeze. So much existential angst.

A simple recipe for enjoying life at any stage:

- A loving, nurturing relationships (family and friends)
- Intellectual stimulation
- Meaningful activity
- Connection with one's local community
- Exercise
- A Healthy diet
- Restful sleep
- A spiritual practice

We are in the philosophy forum.

Philosophy should inform one's way of life so that one enjoys it.

You can spend your time "riding the decline" and feeling sorry for yourself; or you can decide to enjoy the time you have and quit obsessing. It's up to you.

I've described what my approach is going to be.

Interesting choice of words I think...there is a decline going on. We spend our lives accumulating and towards the end (or in that last third) we give it all away and downsize. What was it all for? Why the incline only to lead to a decline? Why can't we just ride the incline until the moment of death and then look forward to the fast drop like that of a rollercoaster? I mean, what a rush, right?

Why do we still have the same societal standards and norms that were in place 100 years ago? Why must there be a decline at all?

Dude, you're the one lamenting that the final third of life being a "downer" - your words, not mine:

"Anything boomer related these days speaks of downer stuff...aging, health issues, retirement (read "fixed income"), etc. No growth, a lack of money and resources, downsizing and death. Oh joy!!! Don't ya just feel the energy rising when thinking about that last third of life? NOT!!!"