Vignettes on Aging – Choice

Old people forget just how many choices we have. We feel out of options, without any control, and at the whim of something or someone else. Yes, sometimes life beyond our control throws us curve balls that we must deal with as best we can. Those curve balls in no way mean we don’t have options.

Sometimes doing nothing is an option.

We need to remember that getting older doesn’t back us into some physical corner. It changes where and how we participate but not IF we participate. When we’re relatively healthy and when we stimulate our minds, there are lots of choices available to us. Age and infirmity don’t automatically mean fewer choices, but we’re fed this idea as we move into our later years.

Attitudes Affect Choices

Sometimes our best choices and options are connected to our attitude. One of the biggest and best attitude modifications is to change the categorization of every single thing as good or bad. Once labeled, then the either good or bad thing makes us feel accordingly. Sometimes things just are. Labeling does nothing to improve or help us cope with a situation. If you receive upsetting health news, it won’t help you deal with the choices about what to do if you call the illness or disease bad. It just is. No label is required. Dealing with issues may be challenging but labeling them as ‘bad’ only gives the negative more power and makes things worse.

An overall positive attitude keeps us open to a wider array of choices. If we’re pessimistic, our head down, we’re grumbling under our breath, and we miss opportunities and choices that might not show up if we’re not open to all the possibilities.

How would you rate yourself in seeing all the choices you have? Are you a strong believer that age always limits our choices significantly? Do you practice ‘it just is’ regarding your choices, without labeling? Do you let others dictate your choices?

What will you choose today?