I’m around 50. The age when life gently reminds us, that our body and our mind age at different speeds. To learn what it means to grow older, I decided to do a couple of drawings that show different aspects of aging.

Experiencing Happiness-Sadness

With these drawings I would like to invite you to lean into the uncomfortable realisation, that one day we all will die. I’m convinced that by allowing the feelings of fear, loss and sadness to wash over us, we can actually learn to be more courageous, grateful and happy. We cannot understand what it means to be happy, if we haven’t experienced sadness.

The parachute

Let’s look at this first sketch. When I drew it I imagined life as a jump out of an airplane, slowly drifting down as we get older.

Let’s use this image to go a little bit deeper.

Imagine yourself, or someone you love, hanging in the parachute. You’re slowly drifting towards the ground. The ground is still far away. Maybe it’s night, so you can’t really know what is down there. You somehow understand, that one day you will touch the ground, but what that means is hard to grasp. If it’s a clear day, the view from your parachute is quite amazing. As the years pass, your mind keeps coming back to the question: “What is waiting for me down there?”

What do you feel?

Feeling is living

I propose to use these feelings as an opportunity to start a conversation with yourself, your partner, your friends, your cat or a stranger.

I can’t give you an explanation what is down there. I’m convinced that by allowing the feelings to touch your heart, you will feel alive.

Yes, maybe you will feel sad, angry or afraid. I promise that my next drawing will hopefully offer a happier view on aging.

Namaste

P.S. Here the link to Brene Brown’s sketchnote, that explains how positive and negative emotions are closely related.