You Are Going To Grow Old And Die

You Are Going To Grow Old And Die! - Robert Rohm ~ / ~

This coming Friday, April 22, is my birthday! I will be 73 years old. Wow! That really does sound old, doesn’t it? I can still remember when my mother turned 40… and I thought that was old!

Getting older is not so bad. It also comes with a lot of advantages, as I will soon explain! I thought the title of this Tip might get your attention! That thought is not as morbid as it may seem at first glance. If you keep reading, you will see that this Tip really is going to turn in a positive direction.

I have become painfully aware that death is a reality. It is not something we like to talk about much, but it is something that is very, very true. Death still comes one per person.

I have seen people act as though they were going to live forever, not giving much thought to their future. That is a short-term way of thinking because we all are going to be dead a lot longer than we are going to be alive. Thanks Zig!

In the hilarious movie, “What About Bob?”, Dr. Leo Marvin’s son, Siggy, (short for Sigmund Freud) is lying in bed one night talking to Bob. As he lies there, he says, “We are all going to die and there is nothing we can do about it.” Bob tries to cheer him up, but nevertheless, Siggy has made his point. It is true; death is on its way for you and me.

The reason I say that this is not a morbid thought is because of some of the things we have learned about the process of life. Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” That is to emphasize, you should jump into life with both feet and thoroughly experience all it has to offer while you still can. Socrates also said, “Fear not that your life will one day end – rather, fear that it never had a beginning.” In other words, death is coming, but so what?! In the meantime, LIVE!

The older I get, the more I see that life truly is an adventure worth living. If all you do is worry and fret about every situation that comes your way, you are already dead even though your heart has not stopped beating. Everything that we do leads to an important opportunity to explore the unknown and enjoy this thing called life. Getting proactively involved with your life is the best way to learn and grow. Experience is still the best teacher available. However, you still do not have to touch a hot stove to know that it will burn you!

Even if things are not going well for you right now, do not despair. There may be a promotion or a new opportunity for you just around the next corner. Remember, if you are still alive, opportunity still exists for you! I have seen people succeed just because they were faithful in their current set of circumstances and were able to “stay the course.” If you have staying power and longevity in what you are doing, you may succeed simply by outliving your competition! The better thing, however, would be to try to achieve everything you can while you are alive and let life promote you at the proper time because of your good attitude and the fact that you live well each day.

I have discovered the possibility that with many years comes much wisdom. If you will apply yourself to what you are learning, then you will be rewarded while you are still living. Think about what you have already learned and how that knowledge has helped shape your own life. You don’t have to wait until you die for people to talk about how good you were. The process can begin now, rather than later.

I am more encouraged about life than I have ever been, but it is tempered and balanced with soberness that death is still facing me one day. I do not know when that day will occur, but in the meantime, I am going to live every day to the fullest. I want to get the most out of life, knowing that when it does come to an end, I will have experienced it and not avoided it. The same could be true of you. Get in the game. Start living today!

Tip: You are going to grow old and die!

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm