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Recently I watched a documentary about the exceptional life and music of the vocalist Linda Ronstadt. Now 73, living with Parkinson’s disease, wheelchair dependent and no longer able to sing, she displayed an acceptance of her current reality with her characteristic optimism and humor. One quote in particular has continued to resonate with me. She asks “People want to talk about life after death, but what about life before death? How do we want to live?” This deceptively simple question is at the heart of conscious aging.

I’ve been a pretty good athlete for most of my life. I played organized varsity level sports through college, and I’ve stayed active over the ensuing years. To this day, I remember specific amazing plays or passes or throws I made, and I can still feel my own immediate wonderment at how I ever did such things – wonderment because I did not think at all about doing them at the moment they happened. They just happened. It’s called being in a zone.

Realizing your human potential is everyone’s birthright. Our experiential programs offer noetic discovery for all who seek to evolve themselves and the world.

All human beings have a natural ability that they use daily to transform their world. It’s called imagination. I like to pronounce it I*magic*nation, because it reminds me of its magical powers. Often the rational, scientific part or our mind discounts our mental creations as “just” imagination. But none of the advances of science would have been possible without the ability to conceive of the opportunity first. I enjoy seeing pictures of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge while it was being built and it had only the two towers and no connection in the middle. It reminds me that it didn’t always exist. If Joseph Strauss hadn’t imagined the bridge, and others were not able to also visualize it and to add to the creation, this marvel of human ingenuity would never have been built.

It is through inner experience — our dreams, our intuitions, our creative musings — that life-impacting transformation, innovation, and well-being are birthed. Think of a “moonshot” — an ambitious, collective effort to achieve the seemingly impossible. Moonshots are audacious. They are bold. Moonshots help us build a bridge to an inspiring, creative future.

Originally published in DVD format, Living Deeply: Transformative Practices from the Word’s Wisdom Traditions has been out of print for several years. We are delighted to announce that the nine experiential practices guided by master teachers are now available as an online video course.

Recently, I moved into a wonderful historic building which has been converted into affordable apartments for older people. It has been a pleasure meeting other residents – our ages spanning five decades.

For the first time ever, you can experience the Conscious Aging workshop online

Conscious Aging is a live, online, experiential workshop for older people seeking guidance, meaning, and connection. You will meet once-a-week for six weeks with our IONS-certified facilitators and other like-minded adults to discover what gives heart and meaning to your life, how you can enrich the years ahead, and so much more.

The other night, after surfing movie choices on my laptop, I watched The Matrix, which I hadn’t seen since it first came out in 1999. I liked it then, and I still do.