Guard your serenity. Don’t let anyone or anything or any situation take away your well-being.
While older people tend to experience serenity more often than younger people, it’s not a given that every one of us will become calmer and less anxious the moment we get to a predetermined ‘old age.’
Serenity takes work.
Let’s face it, almost everything that benefits us in old age takes a little or a lot of work. And not everyone is the same. The ability to bring forth a serene feeling comes easily to those whose inherent nature is to take things — any things — with a larger grain of salt. People who, like me, didn’t have the best role models in their youth, struggle a little more to capture the calmness that is always available to us. I usually get to the calmness but I get it through or after a rush of anxious emotions and feelings.
Whether it comes naturally or not, there are things we can do to bring forth a greater sense of serenity into our lives.
We know the usual methods to gain serenity include meditation/mindfulness, journaling, and expressing gratitude. Other ideas include:
~activities that get us out of our heads … like doing something for someone else. The needs of others are huge; pick something and go for it. The sheer energy of doing this will dissipate most anxiety and replace it with a wash of calm.
~taking the most selfish care of ourselves. Treat yourself as you would a child: feed this preciousness the best foods, make her sleeping space the most special and comforting, and reassure her she has exactly what she needs to be abundantly safe.
~sprucing up your environment. The brighter and cleaner and less cluttered your house is, the more enhanced your serenity will be, Clutter and mess detracts from our ability to experience stability. At the very least, cleanliness should be maintained for increased wellness.
~accepting and loving ourselves. Getting older brings physical changes, but it doesn’t mean you become ugly or less valuable, Again, treating yourself and your worth as that of a dear child is a good place to start. You are that child, and you deserve the best.
By cultivating serenity, we find clarity and contentment in simplicity, and we learn to appreciate the joy in stillness. In this way, serenity empowers us to truly live fully, savoring each moment, and recognizing that peace within is the greatest gift we can give ourselves in old age.
During these unprecedented wild and crazy times, serenity is our quiet strength.