With an Ageless Attitude You're Never Too Old

It seems as though there’s a common fear among women as they age; that they have an expiration date and once they reach a certain point in time they’re too old. Too old to try new things, go on grand adventures, start new careers, or live the life of their dreams.

We’ve never really bought into that way of thinking. Perhaps it’s because within our midst is a real-life example that debunks this limiting belief; our own mother, Rita.

Shortly after Mom turned 60, she and Dad sold their farmstead of 30 years, got rid of most of their belongings, purchased a massive RV and hit the road with nothing but a compass and possibility ahead of them. When they announced their plans it wasn’t hard to imagine Dad loving life on the road, but Mom? She was more of the stay at home and tend to the garden type. But, it’s been over 6 years now and together they’ve had enough adventures to prove to anyone that you’re never too old.

While they still summer back at the farm, the rest of the year is spent touring the highways and byways of the country and volunteering for the Texas State Park System. They’ve been east and been west, visited what we believe to be a record number of wineries, walked battlefields and toured mansions, and never leave a state without stopping at the Presidential library, if there is one. Some of their escapades make us extremely nervous and we remind them that we’re not made of money and should they be kidnapped while exploring those remote towns in Mexico, we’re not quite sure how we would pay?!

Their State Park stories make us a bit anxious too. The long hikes on rough terrain setting trail markers is very physically demanding, even for the much younger park rangers, let alone a couple of 60 something gringos. Still, they send back pictures of the group, park rangers exhausted and resting in the shade, Mom and Dad in wide brimmed hats, spry as always and smiling from ear to ear.

You can image our surprise when Mom announced she and Dad would be taking a 4 day tour across the Rio Grande into the mountains of Mexico, on mules no less. Mules? Yes, the extremely steep and rough terrain was too much for most horses. Mules could navigate the rugged country much better. And so they went, and rode, and had a great time. We picture their adventure to be a little like Billy Crystal and the gang in City Slickers. They say it was a full trip, riding up to 25 miles a day, but that they hope to do it again, sore butts and all.

And who can forget white water rafting on the Rio Grande. The white water was no match for Mom. Five hours was spent navigating the river along with a guide. The areas of rapids were a little threatening to them at first but it didn’t take very long at all before they had the hang of it. They also were able to experience rafting through multiple narrow gorges, too. And as they glanced up they couldn’t help but notice stranded vehicles perched along the side wall. Cars that had driven off the road up above and it was too dangerous for any rescue personnel to pull them back out, so there they stayed. Yikes is right!

But the adventure to beat all, and one that makes us wish we could implant a tracking device into each, consisted of them setting out through the Texas dessert to look for ancient hieroglyphics. They had heard about them from a park ranger and listened intently as he described the location. On their next day off they packed up their Jeep and set out across unkempt roads (later we would learn a cactus spine had actually lodged into the tire of their vehicle but they made it all the way back to Wisconsin before the tire began to leak!).

After hours of driving they finally arrived at their destination, a sheer rocky cliff. Not exactly as they envisioned, and not prepared with any type of climbing gear, they stopped for a moment to question if they should really continue.

Well, since others had done it, they certainly could too and so they set out up the rock face. Carefully climbing but enjoying every minute. Upon reaching the top and discovering the ancient drawings, they decided their climb was definitely worth it; a view of untouched history. The hieroglyphics were amazingly preserved within the recesses of the cliff. And the view of the mountainous dessert, well that was amazing too.

But then came the even more difficult task of climbing down. Thankfully they made it back safe and sound and reported back to the park ranger about how amazing their day was. With wide eyes the ranger replied, “What?! No one climbs up there! How did you even make it?!”

Thanks for being such a positive influence on us Mom! We may not be quite as adventurous as you, but we haven’t given up on ourselves yet! You’ve proven to us that there’s plenty of time for wild escapades and thrilling explorations. But more important is this lesson: Age isn’t a number, and it has nothing to do with how you feel…it’s more of an attitude and yours is ageless. We love you!

The Soul Sisters

Soulspiration of the Week:
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” ~C.S. Lewis

Motherhood Advice from an Angel

I started thinking mid-week about the fact that this Sunday was Mother’s Day and that my blog should somehow relate, but I was struggling on which direction to go with things. I thought that I could write a funny blog; full of humorous mom moments. Or I could write a really deep and moving blog; one that would surely make my mom cry. Or maybe something inspirational would be better? I had no clue. The possibilities were really endless of where I could take this week’s blog post. And then it hit me! I’m a mom – why not tell a “mom story” from my own experience. Perfect!

I’ve been a mom for almost five years now. My daughter will turn five next month and my son is nearly 14 months. I am by no means a perfect mom but I try my best and think I do a pretty darn good job. Oh, but believe me, there are times where I’m stressed, overwhelmed, and cranky all at the same time.

I can recall a specific day about 2 years ago when I was having a particularly tough day. It seemed as though everything was going against the grain that day, including my daughter, who was about 2-1/2 at the time. We had an appointment that I was trying rush out the door for – and that was maybe the day I learned that you can’t rush a toddler. My usually sweet, well-behaved daughter was being just plain naughty. We finally got to our appointment and I was still feeling irritated. It was one of those days where you’d opt to put your child back in if it was in any way possible.

While in the waiting room I noticed an older, gruff-looking man sitting across the small room. I’m sure he could sense the kind of day I was having, as I was trying to keep my daughter from being completely unruly. I went to grab a magazine and this gentleman said to me, “Sometimes, all you can do is love them.”

I have always believed that there are earth angels that are put in our paths in the moments we need them most. That day I needed that man to be there to say those words to me to pull back up from my “downward spiral of a day”. Those words have made a world of difference to me. Since that day I have found myself repeating them to myself whenever my kids are putting me through an especially trying time. And when I’m completely at the end of my rope, I take a look at my beautiful children, and think, “right now, I’m just going to love them.”

Today, I’d like to give a special shout-out to all the mom’s out there: Here’s to our power to heal boo-boo’s, our strength in upholding our families, and our beauty when it’s least expected. Happy Mother’s Day!

Becky,
Sister of Soul

Soulspiration of the Week:
“No one in the world can take the place of your mother. Right or wrong, from her viewpoint you are always right. She may scold you for little things, but never for the big ones.” ~Harry Truman