Kind (Self) Regards: The Circle of Life

I am of the generation that thought we’d never live to be 30. More accurately, we thought that there was no point in going beyond that if we should actually reach that ripe old age. But, lo and behold, most of us reached 30 and somehow found ourselves continuing on.

Things weren’t so bad on “the other side.” We had good jobs, we had all the stuff we had renounced when we were younger, and even though our years on this earth were accumulating, we were never going to get old. Life was good. And then came the Great Recession – a perfect storm, if you will, that threw many of us out of whack and into a new sort of reality. A woman who once worked for me said: “I can’t believe how old I’ve gotten and I can’t even pay for Botox.” Yes, we lost our retirement funds, and even worse, many of us lost our jobs. Though we knew we were (and are) smart and talented – and believe ourselves still ageless -- the world suddenly saw us as old and expensive.

So where do we go from here? The choices, of course, are endless which is what makes it so hard. And because our pasts are so rich, it makes it harder still. But I have a yoga teacher who has said that you must let go of what ‘was’ to make room for ‘what can be’. And I think that is partially true. You cannot hang on to what was; the past is the past. But – and this is a big but – you need to retain the elements of what mattered.

So today I find myself learning to live with less and realizing that is where I started all those many years ago. I am still ageless. I listen to Vampire Weekend, but on a long road trip it’s definitely Neil Young. When I crank up the CD player on the way to work these days (as opposed to blasting out my eardrums on my iPod), you might find me singing along to Blonde on Blonde – and I am not talking about a download of Lady Gaga and Madonna or the latest celebrity lesbian kiss stunt.

I may not have the career that I once had in the corporate world. But I still sing on my way to work in the morning. I leave my job in daylight and come home to look at my garden. My weekend BlackBerry messages are from friends. There are no office emergencies. Life has been simplified.

I have an old ring that, I was told, represents the circle of life. That has more meaning to me now than ever before as I seem to circle back to the ideals of a younger self. I may be on “the other side” of 30, but I remember ‘what mattered’ and focus my energy on ‘what can be’.

Kind (Self) Regards,

Vicki



Vicki Wray lives in North Stamford, and until recently spent most of her waking hours in New York City as a corporate communications executive. Working for companies like Pfizer, Revlon and AOL Time Warner has allowed her to meet wonderful colleagues and a slew of interesting personalities including the president of the United States, supermodels and star athletes, famous artists and a Justice of the Supreme Court. She is a natural observer, type A personality, and a life-long "spa junkie". Vicki firmly believes in the health benefits of being kind to oneself; taking a moment to breath, relax and finding simple joy in our every day existence.

Her column, Kind (self) Regards, will be a regular feature of the Aetheria Spa blog. If you enjoy her point of view, or would like to share your ideas, please contact her at vicki@aetheriaspa.com.