The Joy of Ageing, Esoterically – from beginning to end with no end in sight

Okay, I am biased – admittedly, but nevertheless this book has always been a joy, from beginning to end and no end in sight, not for a long while yet.

The pictures of these vital and fully engaged elders speak for themselves: the depth and sparkle of their eyes, the gentleness of their wrinkles, the potency of their writing, the validity and assuredness of their presence, their fully claimed and embodied confidence.

This sumptuous book is divided into age groups, from men and women in their fifties, the sixties and seventies to those in their eighties plus a tribute to Judith McIntyre who passed over in 2014. And yes, the men have written and contributed as well!

These accounts are no holds barred sharings of what has and what hasn’t worked and what it means to grow older and into the authority of one’s elder years without excuses, any hint of invisibility or signs of dementia.

These elders are fully engaged, living and breathing life and plan to do so until their last breath. Their presence is based on their beingness, on their innermost and thus it is not the ‘doing’ that defines them. And thus, they do not bury themselves into hobbies as an escape, nor travel for travel’s sake or engage in endless screen sessions, whether that be the TV or a tablet; these elders are either working or engaged in the community – contributing and giving back from the depth of their beingness and lived wisdom.

And there are no sad and sordid tales here; yes, Iife happens and what happens isn’t always so great, but these elders know that every moment in life is the end result and consequence of the many moments they have lived before and the steps they have walked thus far. They have taken responsibility for their choices, past and present and know that they themselves are not the victims of life, circumstances, of bad or good luck.

And thus, not a whiff of victimhood in sight, no vying for sympathy, commiseration or any other hooking emotion. As the reader, you are left to just be and enjoy these 40 life stories, to ponder and contemplate and come to your own conclusions.

And why write about The Joy of Ageing, esoterically now, some six or so years after its publication you might wonder?

Firstly, this book does not age and it is as relevant as ever, if not more so with our ageing population worldwide, tipping the scales in the ratio of young and old. But I recently sold my car to a lady in her sixties and when I handed the freshly cleaned and filled vehicle over, I left a wrapped-up copy of the book on the back seat for her to do with it as she pleases – to be inspired or reject the offering.

Offering of what? Of the fact that there is another way to live, at any age but especially in our elder years; to live from the inside out, bring that to the world and be fully engaged until our last breath.

I leave you with one of the quotes in this book:

"Age alone does not denote truth nor experience,
It merely counts the years spent in one’s energetic state of being."
Serge Benhayon Esoteric & Exoteric Philosophy, ed 1, p 87

By Gabriele Conrad, Editor

Working as an editor of Serge Benhayon’s as well as other books and material – when I am not at my ‘day job’ – is a huge and very rewarding part of the amazing way I now live thanks to The Way of The Livingness.