To Life!

Life is a funny thing. We are born, hopefully, loved and we grow until we can't grow anymore. Then we set about creating lives, acquiring stuff, getting ahead and making lots of money (or not), having our own children and being busy. So busy, in fact, that we never realize that life is passing us by and will soon be over.

I am now of an age where all of my rushing, achieving, acquisition and working is behind me. My daughter is grown with children of her own, I'm retired and I have the luxury of being able to reflect upon more noble things.

When we lived on kibbutz in Israel we learned about "noble" worries. On kibbutz all of one's survival issues are covered; you have a roof over head, three squares a day and work to keep your hands busy. Even your laundry is done for you, child care is provided and there is built in community. All that is left for one to worry about are Noble Worries. i.e., am I happy, are my children okay, what causes the sky to be blue and flowers the flowers to grow? Noble Worries.

It sounds idyllic, but there are inherent problems with only having Noble Worries. For me it bred discontent and I think having only Noble Worries was the main reason we left and jumped back into the flames of life.

We had a lot of drama and struggles upon our return to the States. Our daughter wanted to stay in Israel and she acted out for years. We moved to Key West which was not the best environment for her. Her education suffered because the school system sucked! And she was a wild child.

We struggled because we were kibbutzniks with strange skill sets. I milked cows, cooked for the kibbutz population and I am an artist. My only avenue for work was to cook, especially since there are no cows in the Keys. I went to work in the hotels. Jon was a machinist in Israel, he milked cows too, and worked in the knitting industry prior to Israel and that was dead in the USA. He went to work in a shrimp farm during the night shift. His primary function was making sure that the shrimp didn't jump out of their pools and listening to NPR on the radio. He worked as a night watchman, a baker and a counterman at the local car dealer.

It took a good five years to find our way, but our money issues continued for far longer than that. But, we found our way. By the time I retired I was an ordained minister and working for hospice as a Chaplain. Jon was the operations manager at a very large apartment complex. 

I have learned that Life is good. All the issues, problems, annoyances, struggles fade into the background as you age. Joints hurt, you don't see as well and you're a little forgetful, stomach and digestive issues abound and you start to feel a little stupid as technology moves beyond you, but, as long as you have the survival issues covered, the Noble Thoughts give great meaning and joy to life. 

If you are still on that merry-go-round of life try to pause. Pause if only for a few minutes a day to ponder the Noble Thoughts. Devote a little time to thinking outside of your everyday issues. Look up. Develop a sense of awe. You will be very grateful that you did when you wake up one morning looking at your mother's hands on the end of your arms.