Last week, Janice and I celebrated our 41st wedding anniversary with a getaway to Patagonia, Arizona. It’s a beautiful little town surrounded by mountains, grasslands, and some of North America’s best birdwatching.
Our Airbnb host was a lovely woman who, following a traumatic experience several years ago, decided to change her life. She purchased 71 acres outside Patagonia and has spent the past five or six years transforming the property into a sanctuary for birds and the people who love watching them.
As we got acquainted, I became fascinated with her story. Here was someone who had experienced a profound shift in life and found a new sense of purpose in creating something beautiful.
Naturally, I asked whether she might be interested in letting me write about her experience. She seemed delighted with the idea. Then I mentioned Aging with Gratitude and explained that I also photograph the people whose stories I tell.
Her expression changed immediately. She looked down at her shoes and quietly said, “No, I’m much too private for that.”
Then she looked up, brought her hands toward her face, and struggled to find the words to explain her discomfort with being photographed.
I understood completely. I thanked her for her honesty and assured her that I respected her feelings.
But the experience reinforced something I’ve been discovering since launching Aging with Gratitude.
Finding people with meaningful stories isn’t particularly difficult. Finding opportunities to approach them, earn their trust, and invite them to share intimate details of their lives is another matter. Add the vulnerability of sitting for a portrait, and the challenge grows considerably.
I hadn’t anticipated just how much time and energy this project would require.
Throughout our anniversary getaway, I found myself praying for guidance about whether to continue. Was this something I truly wanted to pursue, or had I created another obligation for myself at a stage of life when I’m increasingly drawn toward simplicity?
After a lifetime of striving, building businesses, setting goals, and chasing one ambition after another, I’m discovering something rather wonderful about growing older.
Doing less, being more
Sometimes the wiser choice is to do less, appreciate more, and enjoy the extraordinary gift of simply being alive.
And sometimes that means letting go of a perfectly good idea.
My decision also comes from recognizing that my energy isn’t what it used to be, even though I’m only in my mid-sixties. I can feel the difference compared to my younger years. I remember listening to older people talk about the realities of aging. Now, I’m living them.
These days, I’m learning to use my energy more wisely. I’m still figuring out how to navigate these later years, and I’ll be the first to admit I’m a rookie when it comes to retirement. After a lifetime of working, building, and hustling, I’m paying closer attention to how much energy I have and where I want to invest it.
The desire to accomplish something hasn’t disappeared entirely, but it no longer drives me the way it once did. Instead, I’m practicing the art of letting go, becoming comfortable with doing less, and discovering what it means to spend more time simply being rather than doing.
Over the past few days, the answer became clear. I’ve decided to close Aging with Gratitude as a separate publication and consolidate my writing at The Clarity Letter, where I’ve been sharing stories, lessons, and reflections for considerably longer.
When less becomes more
The spirit of Aging with Gratitude isn’t going away. Gratitude, aging, personal transformation, and the wisdom we gain from living will remain central themes in my writing. I’m simply bringing everything together under one roof.
To everyone who subscribed, whether paid or free, thank you for believing in this project and joining me on this brief adventure. I appreciate your encouragement and support more than you know.
I’ll be closing Aging with Gratitude within the next week, at which point all subscriptions, both free and paid, will end. If you haven’t already subscribed to The Clarity Letter, you’re welcome to join me there as a free or paid subscriber. I’d be delighted to have you along.
Perhaps the greatest lesson I’m learning at this stage of life is that not every worthwhile idea needs to become a lifelong commitment.
There’s a certain freedom in knowing when to begin something, and just as much wisdom in knowing when to let it go.
And for that, I’m grateful. Thank you for being here with me.