Aging Capriciously

Time and time again! We make the same mistakes over and over again. We say that history repeats itself. Styles return and fashions go in cycles. Some of us believe we will be born again and others believe in reincarnation. The same people give us the same headaches time and time again. Is there anything new under the sun or is life simply one big process of recycling? What does it mean to be new or different? When we think we are being unique, are we simply copying an earlier style or idea? Who among us has had an idea that has never been thought of before? We have here the makings of an age old argument wherein there are those who believe that there is nothing new under the sun and those who like Heraclitus (535 BC) say “we never step in the same river twice.” The Chinese invented an early form of vaccination four thousand years ago and the Romans had an early form of air conditioning. Are old ideas simply recycled and modernized to be labeled like the “New Improved Tide.” We all know it is the same old Tide, with a new package.

On the other hand, how could we be living in the world today if not due to brand spanking new ideas? Satellites, automobiles, computers, cell phones, blogs, and myriad other products and services did not exist more than 100 years ago. How could these all be simply old ideas recycled? This question forces us to think about the definitions of new and old. New ideas surely stem from old ideas and many ideas were first thought of hundreds if not thousands of years ago. However, it is one thing to think of an idea and another thing to bring it to fruition. Many of the products and services we have today would not have been possible even decades ago. They would not have had the supply, production, distribution or technology to create the products and services we so casually enjoy today. No, I say give the old it’s due but today is not the past. I agree with Heraclitus, “You never step in the same river twice.”

What is one thing that you feel is truly new in your life? What is one thing different about your life from anyone else’s in your family? What is something that you think is unique about today’s world that differentiates it from the world of your ancestors? Do you think we are making progress in the world, staying in the same place or falling behind?

Twenty four hours to live! Sounds like a movie. But what if you woke up this morning and some inner voice told you that you had only twenty four hours to live. You knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this would be your last day on earth. You would not wake up to see another day. Few mortals know the time and means of their death so would you be blessed or cursed?

Let’s assume that you were going to expire painlessly in your sleep and that you were not presently sick or infirmed, but you had only 24 hours to live. This is a very difficult thing to imagine. However, what would you do with your time? Would you still get ready for work? Would you call all of your loved ones and say good-bye? Would you head down to the local casino and spend your last dollar? You would not have enough time to go on that trip you dreamed about but you would have more than enough time to reflect on your life. What could or should you have done with it? Is it too late to ask this question? Is it irrelevant now? Perhaps not! Perhaps, you could still make a difference in the world with your last 24 hours. Perhaps, you could feel that your life really mattered. Well, after thinking about this, would the knowledge of your death be a curse or a blessing? Do you feel that your life matters now? If not, why wait until it is too late?

Saturday is the day many of us wait for all week long. It is the first day of our weekend. The day we are free to play, work in the yard, take the motorcycle for a spin, go fishing, camping, hiking or take a trip. Saturday is a mini-vacation. We get fifty two Saturdays a year and we wish we had more. Did you know that fewer people were born on Saturdays than on other days? One study showed that “Weekend births (around 8000 per day) are significantly lower than weekday births (about 11,000 to 12,000 per day). I believe it is because we don’t like to do scheduled things on Saturday. It is our day of rest. It is our day of play. It is our day to do whatever we want to do. Even on Sunday, our legitimate day of rest, we may have obligations like going to church or visiting relatives. However, Saturday, we are free to do whatever we want to do. (Unless of course, we are one of the unfortunates who have to work overtime or work on the weekend.)

Little Richard had a hit song called “Rip It Up.” The lyrics went like this:

“Saturday night and I just got paid
I’m a fool about my money, don’t try to save.
My heart says “go go, have a time”
Saturday night and I’m feeling’ fine.”

We party on Saturday like there will be no tomorrow. We rip it up before we have to return to work on Monday. Wikipedia says that “Saturday is the seventh day of the week, between Friday and Sunday (the first day), and represents the death of the weekly cycle before its rebirth on Sunday. It retains its Roman origin in English which is of the Roman god of agriculture Saturn.” Apparently, the Sabbath was changed by the Roman Catholic Church from Saturday to Sunday so that we now see Sunday as the last day of the week. We are free to party and play on Saturday since we can rest up on Sunday.

Nevertheless, we don’t consider our Saturday exertions to be work. Perhaps, since we are free to choose what we do, it does not feel like work to spend the day gardening or working on the car or house or just partying. Many people work harder on Saturday then they do the rest of the week. I have friends who can hardly wait for Saturday to come so that they can take a long canoe trip, a hundred mile bike ride or run a marathon. They regard such activities as fun and play. It seems to all come down to how much we are in control of what we do. When others tell us what to do and when to do it, it is work. When we are in control and can do things on our own schedule, it is play.

How much control do you have over your time and activities? Do you feel like you make the decisions regarding how your time is spent? Do you feel like others make the decisions for you? How much of your time and life do you control? How could you take more control of your time?

November is the month that winter really begins in Minnesota. The song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot always lurks in my mind during November. I can hear the following refrain from his song whenever the wind blows strong:

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call ‘Gitche Gumee’.
Superior, they said, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early!

“November is the eleventh and penultimate month of the year in the Gregorian calendar and one of four Gregorian months with the length of 30 days. In Latin, novem means “nine”. November was also the ninth month in the Roman calendar until a month less winter period was divided between January and February” (Wikipedia).

November for me is when our leaves have all gone, fall is over and we expectantly wait the coming snow. Our November days alternate between gray and gloomy with strong winds and an occasional burst of weak sunshine. It is as if the weather gods are building up to heap winter upon us but they haven’t yet quite got the steam for an all out winter storm. The lakes are not fully frozen, the paths have little snowfall and the woods are bleak and dreary looking. Not too many people choose November in Minnesota as their favorite month. The storms we get send you inside with a cold beating rain that is no fun to be caught in. But for a few degrees, a November storm could have been a real blizzard. No snow means no skiing and no snowmobiling. It has not been cold long enough for the ice to be deep enough for ice skating or ice fishing.

What to do in November in Minnesota is a puzzling question. If you are smart, you will build a fire, find a good book, get a hot chocolate, throw a blanket over yourself and resign yourself to five months of winter. With enough firewood, hot chocolate and books, you can make it through another November in Minnesota. You still have Thanksgiving to look forward to. Thanksgiving marks the gateway to the shopping and holiday season. No matter how cold and how much snow there is, you will need to get outside to find the best bargains and put the holiday season in order. .
What do you like and dislike about November? What are your associations with this month? How do you get through November? What is the most important or fun thing that you have ever done in November?

Times Square! It is one of the most famous places in the world. Maybe even the center of the universe. If you have ever stood at Times Square and watched the electronic lights flashing, the huge illuminated advertisements, the people from all the countries in the world passing on the streets, the vendors selling glamour and luxury, you will know you are at the center of Capitalism for the universe. Other places have their special qualities, but there is something about Times Square that fits directly in with our modern materialistic lifestyle.

The history of Times Square and how it got its name is as follows: “In the early 1900s The New York Times publisher Adolph S. Ochs moved the paper’s operations to a new tower, now called One Times Square, on 42nd Street in the middle of the area known as Longacre Square. Ochs persuaded Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr. to build a subway station there and rename it Times Square” (Wikipedia). While it owes its name to the NY Times newspaper, indirectly, it has its own history and links to the time. Each year, millions of people mark the passing of the year in Times Square by watching the illuminated ball drop from the tower. The countdown and dropping of the ball is noted all over the world as each country and state celebrate their own New Year festivities. Hundreds of thousands of people will assemble in Times Square to stand shoulder to shoulder with others just to watch this ball drop and yell “Happy New Year.” It is an event to attend and it only happens once each year. Have you ever been to Times Square? Have you ever thought of going there on New Year’s Eve? Why do you think so many people flock to Times Square on New Years Eve? What images does Times Square bring to your mind?

The phrase “hard times” reminds us of those days when things really were tough. They might have been when we had no money, no place to live, no one who cared about us, or when we faced all of the problems of the world alone. Studs Terkel interviewed hundreds of people for his book “Hard Times”, which told the story of the Great Depression through the words of the people who actually lived it. Many people still remember the Great Depression when unemployment rates soared to thirty percent and higher. It affected people not only in the US but in many other countries as well.

Ironically and tragically, some people today still live no better than many did in the Great Depression. The world is full of areas where poverty and unemployment are rife and where “hard times” are the norm. When we think of the hard times in our life, we appreciate more where we are now and what we have now. This is a good thing. However, how often do we think of the hard times in the lives of others? What does the phrase “hard times” mean to people who live where there is no medical care or where starvation and disease still kill thousands?

It is fashionable today to believe that: “They just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. If only they had our work ethic or were more like us, they could have what we have. They could live the good life.” This logic assumes that all things in the world are equal and that all circumstances are equal. It does not take much research or knowledge to realize that this is not true. People do not always bring their hard times on by ignorance or sloth. We cannot always control the world and events around us. Remember the quote by Rudyard Kipling “There but for the grace of God go I.” Jesus Christ said: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew, Chapter 5-7). He did not say “blessed are the hard-hearted, or blessed are those who pull themselves up by their bootstraps, or blessed are those who have the most.” Funny, how many of us can forget the help we needed or wanted when hard times were upon us. Can you find some way to share your good fortune today with others? What can you do today to take some hard times away from someone else? Be grateful for what you have today and see if you can share some of your good feelings and benefits with others.

A three ring circus! The phase usually means something that is wild, crazy, chaotic, and unpredictable. In a three ring circus, you have multiple acts and performances going on at the same time. Today we often hear talk about multi-tasking, but circuses have been multi-tasking long before the word was even in use. Have you ever thought about the planning and coordination that must go into a circus? You can have clowns, acrobats, lion tamers, horses, dogs and jugglers all performing at the same time. Not an easy production to manage! When we think about the fast paced life that many of us live, it cannot compare to a circus.

Well, maybe our lives feel like a circus at times, but most of us are probably not quite at their level of complexity, not to mention risk taking. Lion tamers, acrobats, trapeze artists are all risking their lives each time they get in a ring. For many people, circuses seem exotic and exciting. Kids once dreamed of leaving home and joining a circus. Many movies have been made about circus life and the romance and drama amidst the big top. Compare your life to a circus. Are you the ringmaster, a high wire artist, a clown or one of the support people that make the circus work behind the scenes? What part of the circus life do you live? Is your life filled with exciting drama, risk-taking, death defying stunts or mostly the daily chores of watering the elephants and camels? For some of us, life may be picking up the poop behind the horses. Real life is not always exciting and glamorous. What part of a circus would you add to your life if you could? What gets in the way? Have you ever thought of running away and joining a circus? What stopped you?

A Federal Holiday! What another one! I have a sister who works for the Social Security Administration. It seems as though every time I call her, they are having some kind of a holiday. I suppose government employees have to get some perks since they are generally lower paid than the private sector. Nevertheless, it is an endless source of fun to tease my sister about her many days off. We all like to get holidays, but the government seems to celebrate some dubious events. On the other hand, maybe the private sector should be more like the government and give us more special days off. Here are my suggestions for some extra holidays. We should all get our birthdays off, anniversaries off, voting day off and “Nice Days” off. (Nice Days off is when it is sunny and warmer than 85 degrees out. These holidays would only apply to those of us who live in Minnesota or really cold weather states. Those of you who live in California, Arizona or Florida, do not need extra weather days off. You should be grateful you do not get ice and snow storms.)

What other days do you think we should have off? Do you think we could get enough people together to start a referendum on new holidays? Do you think 40 or 45 holidays a year would be too much? What do you think about those who live in Europe and get more time off than those of us who live in the US? Do you think that’s fair? What about some “global” holidays? With all of this talk about globalization, do you think we should have some “global” holidays? Can you think of some days which could be global holidays? How about Earth Day or Peace Day or United Sports day?

Have you ever heard the term “Roman Holiday?” Do you know what it means? Allwords.com defines it as: “An event or occasion when pleasure is taken from the suffering of others. Etymology: so called because days of gladiatorial combat in ancient Rome were public holidays.” Does this definition surprise you? Did you think the phrase had a more benign meaning? Perhaps, you thought it meant something like having fun in Rome while on vacation. Well, in one sense, it does, but the “fun” came at the death and suffering of others. Do we still take Roman Holidays? Some people might say boxing, football and many contact sports are enjoyed more for their violent elements than for the athletic prowess they display. Nevertheless, while we might enjoy these sports, it does not mean that we enjoy the suffering of others.

We may in fact enjoy violence, but I draw the line at thinking that many of us really go to events to see people hurt or suffer. In fact, I have a hard time understanding how even the ancient Roman citizens could have been so callous and insensitive. Perhaps, we would have to live in that era to understand why a Roman holiday would have been fun. Today, I think there is a greater sensitivity and awareness of obvious cruelty. Even in contact sports, I see little evidence of a Roman holiday. Has the world really grown and become more caring or do I have my rose colored glasses on? Are we less likely to go on a Roman holiday? Do you want to see anyone hurt or get any pleasure from the suffering of others? Do you secretly hope to see a crash during a NASCAR race or do you want to see the acrobat fall during the high wire act at the circus? I will bet not. Why would you or anyone else want to see someone hurt?

What was the happiest day of your life? It is a lot more pleasurable to think about the happy times in our lives. However, finding the happiest of the happy may not be so easy. The bad times seem to be etched in our minds, but how quickly we forget the happy times! Taking a journey through my past to answer this question, my mind sorts through weddings, vacations, love affairs, graduations, diplomas, certificates, first kisses, jobs, sporting events and sundry other activities and accomplishments. Somewhat surprisingly, I cannot fasten upon any of these as the “happiest day of my life.” Why is this? Am I looking in the wrong places? What about those book contracts, those great pay increases, and those unexpected financial windfalls? None of these seem to do the trick either! What about those great people I have met in my life? Did they help me to have the happiest day of my life? I must answer no to both of these questions.

So where then is the happiest day of my life? Why is it so elusive? Have you thought of your happiest day yet? What made it your happiest day? Was it easy to remember? Did you find it had much competition? Or perhaps, you are like me, unable to think of the happiest day in your life? Maybe, the happiest day of our lives are still to come and we are just waiting for it? On the other hand, maybe yesterday was the happiest day of our lives and we just did not realize it. Are you happiest when you simply live one day at a time and are thankful for the day you live? I think that each day that I can appreciate the smell of fresh air, the joy of a loving spouse, a good job to go to and excellent health is surely the happiest day of my life.