Aging and still curious, open, hopeful, and happy
I snapped that selfie just last week when I was at the doctor’s office, waiting to see what she had to say about my ears. Turns out I need hearing aids in both of them. Well, that’s life for you.
But look at that sparkle in my eye. That’s the same sparkle I had when I was 6 years old, and 16, and 26, and all the way up to now. I always look on the bright side of things.
Always.
A few days after that visit, I had an insight about my life and what I’ve been doing with it. Ever since I can remember, I’ve had a strong faith in people, and in life itself. I’ve always been curious and open to new things, and whenever I find something good, I want to share it with others.
Kind of like writing stuff down and putting it out here for you to read. 😃
Here’s the big wow… everything I’ve ever done, every single thing, has been rooted in one thing… my deep belief that there’s a plan for everything, a divine design. A grand design that is always in play to bring everything and everyone to innate well-being — homeostasis — an even keel — resiliency & inborn/innate health. Homeostasis is that inner GPS for health; like a fever lets us know that something is off and it actually fights the intruding infection — the fever brings us back to health. Our body is always working to bring us back to health and balance. The bug clears and 98.6 returns. That’s innate health, right there; that’s homeostasis.
I see this grand design as obvious. Here is another simple example: how miraculous is my hand? Your hand? How is it that I can have a thought in my mind and my hands can click/clack away on a keyboard and that thought shows up on a screen in front of me? How is it that your hand is scrolling to read these words? No need to go on with the miracles of hand movements; eye movements; will; desire; growth and learning. As the Bible, a valued book of wisdom states…
“Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! It is amazing to think about. Your workmanship is marvelous — and how well I know it.”
(Psalm 139:14)
As I look back on my life, here are three specific areas where this divine design is so in evidence — my life as a nurse & as an educator & as a coach.
Nursing: I decided to become a nurse because I wanted to help people find their way back to their natural health, the health that God gave them. I wanted to work with them and their families to let the grand plan do its thing and heal them. There’s a word that describes that inner state of optimal functioning: homeostasis. It means that our bodies and minds have a built-in drive to stay in balance and harmony.
I’ve seen miracles in my time as a nurse. People who survived terrible accidents and got back on their feet and loved life again. People who beat cancer and grew their hair back and smiled again. People who walked with canes one day and threw them away the next because their own health, their own stem cells, fixed their joints and made them good as new.
Educator: I’m a teacher at heart. What I didn’t realize until recently is this: good teachers don’t fill people’s heads with information. They give them air and water to make their own seeds grow. They shine a light on them and let them blossom. I’ve never been one to dump facts and figures into people’s brains. I’ve been one to show them how wonderfully made they are and how much they can do and be.
Coaching: When I share with people the mechanics of how their minds work and how the power of thought can foster their innate well-being, I feel like I’m doing what I was born to do. Nothing makes me happier than seeing people light up and feel lighter. We all have mental health inside us, and I’m so grateful to all the coaches & teachers of mine who showed me how to tap into it and shine that light for others. Thank you, Syd Banks, for your decades long quest to get the word out about our innate well-being as described by the Three Principles. (If you want to learn more on the Three Principles, please check out 3PGC.org, the Three Principles Global Community)
Aging, curious, open, hopeful and happy. That’s just me. Now, to find this synergy and consistent forward motion taking me to innate well-being at every turn, in and of itself, speaks to the Divine Design. It’s been a wonderful self-discovery at 65.
Oh, and by the way? I got the hearing aid today. Yup… just one. One is just enough to hear you and the birds and my podcasts and, most importantly, hear that Still Small Voice within that is beyond sound.
I am happy to be out here on Medium, sharing my Nurse Wendy lessons on life with you. Give a clap if this article gave you a smile or caused you to look into the inside out nature of human experience. Till next time…
