TOBY AND CLINT ON LIFE

Toby and Clint

I made an interesting connection this morning with myself at almost 82, Toby Keith, the country singer who recently died of stomach cancer at 62 and Clint Eastwood at 93, the Dirty Harry police officer and western movie actor.  What triggered my interest were these thoughts from Max Ehrmann which I stumbled across on social media:

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

Gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

Be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,

No less than the trees and the stars;

And whether or not it is clear to you,

No doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

It seems Toby Keith found inspiration from a casual conversation with Clint Eastwood years ago on the golf course in California.  Keith asked the then 88-year-old actor “What keeps you going?” and he replied “I get up every day and don’t let the old man in”.  So, Keith wrote the hit song by the same name and Clint put it in his movie, The Mule.  Toby also recorded the hit country song As Good As I Once Was which included the lyrics:

I ain't as good as I once was,
I got a few years on me now.
But there was a time back in my prime,
When I could really lay it down.

I ain't as good as I once was,
But I'm as good once as I ever was.

And the internet is full of infamous quotes from Clint’s movies including a couple from the Dirty Harry collection that includes “A man’s got to know his limitations” and “Go ahead and make my day!”  I say all this because the one thing in life I have in common with these entertainers is the reflection of many moons and the game of golf.  I’ve recently faced my mortality and years on the planet, swallowed my man pride and moved up one tee box to make my day, i.e., knowing my limitations.  And I generally only play once a week to satisfy my aching joints and muscles, i.e., but I’m still as good once as I ever was and I don’t let the old man in!   

Yeah, old age ain’t for sissies, but it’s a gift that’s denied to many.  So, “get up and go outside”!  Celebrate all the full moons that you’ve experienced on a late, chilly, fall night as calling wild geese fly overhead.  And “toast each sundown with wine.  Don’t let the old man in.”

https://youtu.be/yc5AWImplfE?si=ivzsSvUni0UJ8E26

OLD SOULS

OLD SOUL, Overland Park, KS

My wife Karen and I passed on having a child when we got married right after college graduation.  We were interested in living life as a couple and getting a bit more financially secure before we made the leap into parenthood.  So, we finally made the decision and were blessed with a healthy baby girl later than most of our contemporaries.  Almost immediately, adoring friends commented on her happy and somewhat mature character.  We chalked it up at the time to the "older birth parents" as a response.

I recently came across the term “old soul” which I considered normally refers to an older, wiser person.  When I just searched for Old Soul images, the majority came up with very whiskered old men and white-haired women.  But one definition noted that an old soul could also be “a person, especially a child or young person, who demonstrates a maturity, understanding, or seriousness that is typical of someone much older. 

The concept of an "old soul" can refer to a person who thinks and behaves more maturely than others their age, or to a being who has lived many lives before the current one… Old souls can be rather endearing. Their demeaner and appeal draw people to them. Likewise, they are fascinating and charismatic individuals.  Subtle signs that you may be an old soul are wisdom beyond years, valuing deep connections, having a reflective nature, curious, empathetic towards others, good conversationalist, mentally and emotionally more mature than most people, etc..  All of these attributes are filled with love and are essential to fulfilling the destiny of an old soul!

Based on my findings, there’s no question that being considered an old soul is quite a compliment.  And the term seems to be more apt for younger children than older adults when it is first observed.  But those traits can be acquired by anyone that sees them as desirable at any age!

 

SAVING FOR THE FUTURE

SEED CORN

DEAD SEA SCROLL

ESSENES CAVES, QUMRAN, ISRAEL

ANASAZI CLIFF DWELLINGS, MESA VERDE, COLORADO

Early in life most folks are simply concerned about getting by day to day and are not too concerned about their future or future generations.  If we were born in America, we’re already richer than the vast majority of the world’s population.  And sadly, for most of us, we gauge our wellness by looking at those around us.  There are pockets of the world with people that have far fewer material goods in their life that are far more satisfied with their situation than those that have far more stuff.  Those civilizations such as the native Americans were custodians of their surroundings so that future generations could survive and thrive.  They shared their beliefs and consumed only those things that sustained life.

Nine years ago, I was standing in an observation area at Qumran, Israel overlooking cave 4 where priceless segments of all fifty-two chapters of the ancient Old Testament book of the prophet Isaiah were discovered.  A dry, hot desert wind was blowing across the desolate landscape with the inviting Dead Sea reflecting the bright sunshine behind me.  Other caves in this desolate and difficult to reach region also contained many other scrolls of Biblical books along with other writings. They had been copied and later hidden in clay jars by an ascetic sect called the Essenes who had retreated from the broken world around them, thus preserving some of the earliest copies of world-famous writings. The occupying Romans conquered Qumran in 68 C.E in response to the great Jewish revolt of the time and dispersed the people.

My mind connected to a time many years ago when I was standing at the edge of a great canyon in Mesa Verde, Colorado and gazing in wonder at ancient cliff dwellings. The Anasazi Indians occupied these cliff dwellings as the wind circulated in a timeless Bernoulli effect through the canyon. The Anasazi planted life giving corn on the “green tables” above them and retreated to the cliff dwellings for protection from the elements and warring tribes. Archaeologists speculate that a twenty-four-year drought finally drove the people to abandon their community. 

When we were walking the Mesa Verde cliff dwellings, I noticed a display that was seared in my memory to this day. The archaeologists exploring the site had discovered a very important find. It was a large clay pot thrown and decorated in the ancient Pueblo Indian style. And it contained the most priceless treasure that the people possessed. The departing people had hidden a cache of seed corn for another season of planting.  Agriculture societies must always set aside enough of the harvest to provide seeds for the next year’s life sustaining crop. Even though the people may have been starving at the time, they knew the seed corn must be preserved for future generations! 

They say that God is in the wind such as in Qumran and Mesa Verde and as a boy growing up in the windy central Kansas plains, I came to instinctively know this as well.  Interestingly, the Essenes had accomplished the same objective as the Anasazi by hiding these priceless scrolls in clay jars so that scholars could have the benefit of examining some of the earliest Biblical writings in existence 2,000 years later. The arid climates and caves had preserved both the seed corn and the scrolls in clay vessels for future generations. And once the crisis had passed and they were exposed to the light, they both could germinate into new life!

And we too are vessels shaped from the stardust clay of the earth, created to prosper and care for those who follow.