Ebbing with Age: Why Some People Learn Nothing from Life

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Sadly, a lot of people ebb with age, or suffer stunted maturity. Tumatanda ng pa-urong, or old age in reverse. Yeah, I use "suffer" because anything good meant for you but which you don't enjoy makes you suffer. It confines you to a small corner of life and that's so much punishment, considering life's vast possibilities.

Photo by Pixabay: pexels.com

So, why do some people remain childish even through old age? Psychology has a lot to say about this, but I'm not a psychologist and I believe my expertise is the practical application of bible truth to real life. Nonetheless, lets see what Psychology has to say.

Emotions Gone Haywire

Immaturity, says the American Psychology Association, is when emotions get the better of good judgment. And its self-centered emotions at that. The self simply wants to boast and prove its worth. It cannot contain the urge and more often that not explodes into massive showing off. It's...

“...a tendency to express emotions without restraint or disproportionately to the situation.” 

Source 

There are times we need to explain a little bit about who we are to people, but when we just keep talking about ourselves or pushing our opinions on others--especially in a way that treats them as unimportant, lesser creatures--we self-express "disproportionately." Emotional maturity, on the other hand is:

“...a high and appropriate level of emotional control and expression.”

Notice that when talking of maturity, psychologists often refer to emotions, not so much the intellect, because it has little to do with it, though the mind and emotions are closely connected. If you got confused there, just ask a psychologist. Now let's see what the bible says.

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EGO

The bible also says a lot about immaturity, or why certain people remain childish, and on top of the list is EGO. In fact, you may say that everything about immaturity revolves around it, the solid center or foundation. The need to prove your worth and get things your way makes you cling to childishness. As you age your emotional and mental growth ebb. 

You want to be great, if not the greatest.

Ego has a lot to do with passion. Passion for self, specifically. In fact, passion, if it's not for godly reasons, is delicious food for the ego. You want nothing else, especially things that have nothing to do with your ego. You stop seeing reality and that keeps you from learning life lessons. Stunts your growth. You trust your own perception alone and rely on your own understanding. 

This is why, for instance, some seniors refuse to have medical checkups, believing that they're not sick of anything. Anyway, they feel strong and healthy. They feel that checkups are for the weak and sickly, which they are not. They can never be weak. Succumbing to checkups or seeing the doctor is a total failure to them. 

This is also why I've seen old people assert their rights as seniors and impose them on others. For instance, they feel they can lecture to anyone, anytime, anywhere, dictating what is right and wrong, arguing that life was much better in their time than now, etc. Yup, they have this need to argue about everything and assert themselves. Often, as well, arguments flare up due to rivalry or competition, proving who's better or smarter.

This should help us enrich our maturity and keep us wisely quiet most times:

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves. [Philippians 2.3]

Jesus modelled meekness by declaring the Father to be better than him, though they were equal. I wish I'd see this attitude among believers, especially pastors, particularly in casual conversations. Also in the corporate world. God's Word is the authority in all matters in life. If you want career development, you need career maturity. You need Jesus' meekness.

If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. [John 14.28]

I just wonder how pastors would feel if many of their members transferred to another local church or Christian denomination. Would they feel as Jesus did with the Father? Would they say, "Yup, you're better off there because that pastor is better than me. Their denomination is better than ours."

You see, because we're all one body in Christ, lifting up another church or denomination means lifting up yourself. If one part suffers, all suffer. If one part is promoted, we're all promoted. See? 

Desire

Closely connected to the ego is covetousness. You want more than enough--it's that simple. If you're like this, your emotions are deteriorating with age. Instead of wising up, you become more narrow-minded. You think the universe revolves around you. You end up like a spoiled brat instead of a wise, broad-minded, patient old man. 

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. [James 4.1-3]

Remember, patience and maturity are close relatives.

Knowing this, that the trying of your faith works patience. 4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (mature), wanting nothing. [James 1.3-4]

Wanting nothing! That's maturity. 

Ego loathes patience and feeds on desire and self-passion. Ego feels that patience is just a waste of time. It needs to be glorified as soon as possible, if not right now. So there's "war within you," says James. "So you murder," and "you fight and quarrel." Desire births carnal urgency and argues a lot for its gratification till it wins and have its own way. That's self-passion. 

So What's the Right Way of Aging?

What's maturity then? It's everything Jesus is. It's wanting nothing. If the Lord is your Shepherd, you shall not want. That's when he makes you lie down in green pastures. Wanting nothing keeps you quiet, peaceful and happy. You won't need to prove anything. You become patient, broad-minded and tolerant of others beliefs and opinions. You don't argue but you may discuss with folks genuinely interested about what you think or have, like Jesus was. 

Mostly Listen

One secret to aging well and maturity is listening. Jesus listened well to the Father. The disciples listened well to him. Initially, they were a bunch of immatures but later, when they learned about the Holy Spirit from Jesus and obeyed, they radically transformed into mature leaders. Listen to how Jesus put it:

By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me. [John 5.30]

When James listened well to Jesus, he got this wisdom:

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, [James 1.19]

It's tragic when man has become so advanced in knowledge and technology and yet learns nothing in life, terribly lacking wisdom and maturity. Just look at wrecked marriages, broken families and so-called new thinking about how they see themselves. It's all due to immaturity, reverse aging.

...always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9 But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. [2 Timothy 3]

In other words, learning but not maturing. And worse, opposing those who are mature and wise, thinking they're smarter because they're loud, and the mature and wise are idiots because they're quiet and patient. You sometimes see this even in church. Leadership has become who's louder, more assertive and self-centered. 

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What If You Get Pinned by Debris in an Earthquake?

After the earthquake last 27th of July, 2022 (Wednesday at 8.43 am), while holding tight to my fresh mug of coffee (I couldn't stand seeing the coffee spilling. I mean, I just finished making it) I immediately reflected about getting pinned amid debris. What if the entire floor pavement above collapsed on me? What if I were in a 30-story building and the tremor happened and the whole building started crumbling? No kidding.

Photo by Sarah Crego on Unsplash.

I have strong and picturesque imagination, so I tried to internalize the scene. A magnitude 7 jolts the ground and immediately the concrete roof caves in. I mean, a mere split second. Suddenly, I'm right in the middle of all the debris, pinned down in a tiny gaping hole among huge chunks of broken concrete and steal, narrowly sparing me from being crushed. What then?

At once I tried to recall safety measures I learned from street self defense and survival trainings I attended or saw on video. Yup, you heard right. Street self-defense shouldn't be all about fighting. It should be about street safety et al. How to keep yourself safe in emergencies like terrorism, street rumbles, fires, earthquakes, the like. Yeah, like an intelligence or special forces operative.

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ALWAYS Keep Alert

It can't be overemphasized. No matter how nice the day is or high ecstatic you are about God's goodness and mercy (and you feel so blessed), always keep alert and ready for deadly action nonetheless. I've made this my life rule. Never be caught off guard. Thus, wearing ear or headphones is a big no-no, anytime of the day. 

I always tell young folks how stupid disengaging themselves from the present is and getting mentally lost somewhere, especially when you're out in the streets. When danger like an earthquake starts, you need instant alertness. Every second counts. No room for lapses or excuses.

Triangle of Life

Rescuers reportedly often find wee spaces among rubbles where a safe refuge is available. If you fit yourself into that space and an entire concrete slab above you falls, there's a big chance you'd be untouched inside that triangular free space they call Triangle of Life. Curl yourself in there. They have discovered survivors in the triangle almost unscratched. It's located right beside a step or stair, or a firm, low furniture, or even the corner where the wall and floor meet.

So, when a big tremor hits and you have nowhere safe to go, dock at once and stay alert, then look for this triangle around you and go to it. Get something strong to cover your head with, like a hard-cover book, pillow, small board or your shoulder bag. Or use your hands if nothing else is available.

Keep Basics Handy

I always have my clutch bag with me when I'm out. I have my very basic stuff in it--emergency meds, alcohol, tissue or bandage, a penlight, my smartphone, a whistle and a small bottle of water. And I can use the bag as cushion to protect my head with. But I often hand-carry a bigger water bottle, 250 or 500 ml. I also have a sturdy, metal ball pen or anything strong and pointed (not a knife, and something small enough to fit my bag) for self defense and survival, in case I need to carve or dig on something for extrication. Keep things small, light, basic and simple. 

A whistle is crucial (actually all the above are) for two things: calling for help during street troubles and calling attention if you find yourself trapped in any way, like pinned by debris in an earthquake. Whistles also come handy for warning or shooing crooks away from their victims or foolishness. 

Know the Safest Places

Take time to learn on the spot the safest places to go during troubles. So, as much as you can, always be aware of your surroundings and study them a bit. You cannot do an exhaustive survey, of course, but give it your best shot. When entering any building, for instance, always pinpoint where the fire escapes are. How many guards at the entrance. Do they look alert or carefree?

If you have no choice but to go home late at night, opt to walk where guarded establishments are located. Some businesses and warehouses are guarded round the clock (they have night shift guards) as well as some subdivisions. The idea is to have people you can ask help from in times of trouble. 

One night some thugs in a truck tried to pursue our cab, intending harm. The driver asked me what to do, obviously in shock. I told him to calm down and directed him to a guard post of a subdivision nearby. I had always noted when I passed by that place how the guard  post was manned by 4 guards with shotguns. When we stopped, I told the guards the truck behind us had thugs that wanted to kill us--I was with my wife and small kid of 5 years. At once, the guards readied their guns. The truck driver saw this and became rattled, driving past as fast as he could.

In the same way, should an earthquake suddenly strike and you're caught between fallen debris, you can easily shout for help from people or guards you know are just close by. 

Stay Healthy and Fit

In any situation, it helps a lot to move ably, fast and accurately. This requires mind alertness and motor skills coordination which you both get from physical workouts and proper eating. A healthy lifestyle, in short. You just need to watch thriller-action disaster movies of Dwaine Johnson, Will Smith and Brad Pitt to understand this. It's hard to stay calm and alert if your BP shoots up or you have a heart attack--or you have big pot belly. 😄 How can you jump from one rooftop to another like Spiderman?

I practice intermittent fasting regularly as a lifestyle, not just for the superb health benefits (natural weight loss and detox with no side effects) but for training my body to eat less and not crave for food. It will work well for you in case of big-time disasters when famine results. And it's not far-fetched. Already we see this happening in areas where localities are isolated after major disasters and food and water become scarce. 

Know How to Fight for Yourself

I enjoy watching apocalypse movies, like those about zombies. Why? I love survival stuff. And a major part of it all is knowing how to defend yourself and your family against attackers and aggressors. It isn't hard to imagine how people will react adversely if extreme crises strike. They will attack unprovoked just to get what they need.

Major earthquakes and pandemics have resulted to widespread looting and burglary, often violent ones. Knowing how to fight systematically and realistically (or streetfighting, which I teach) will come in handy in case you get in the middle of it all. The idea is to get out of it safely and run away, not confront every rabid Tom, Dick and Harry. Fight your way out, hack a route to safety, and run like hell. 

Pray

Last but not least is pray. Pray before, after and during dangers--and even when enjoying peace and safety, when life seems to be so easy and eventless. It pays to get a habit and lifestyle of always praying and worshipping, no matter what the circumstances, so that when dangerous times come, you pray and worship automatically. Talk to God continually everyday. Thank Him for everything and anything and be in constant awe. Even in sleep. Yup, it's possible. It doesn't have to be formal or religious. Just get in the habit of talking to and appreciating God. It's what the bible calls, "pray without ceasing." 

You can take care of yourself and fight your way out of danger with your martial arts expertise (or gun skills) but you cannot cover all angles at the same time all the time. You're bound to miss a line of attack. You're still human with only two front eyes and two hands and feet. This is why prayers count a lot. While God gives you grace to use your defending skills, he can also cover your back and sides, including attacks coming from long way off. He's got you covered at all angles and I can personally vouch for that with my street experiences with HIM.

Use Your Most Inner Power 

A well life is a prosperous life--spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially and financially. Email at personaligyauto@gmail.com to get my e-book (free or with donation) "YOUR POWER WITHIN."

Just Sitting There Can Kill You

We all want a peaceful, simple life because it reduces stress. We believe that's healthy. So instead of going out there to busy ourselves with whatever, we opt to remain home and relax. But wrong relaxation will kill you. It's good to go home and relax, but the question is, what do we mean by that? People have misleading ideas about relaxation which later ends them up in serious trouble.

Photo above by Raj Rana on Unsplash.

And I want to keep stressing this (I mean emphasize, not stress you out 😁) because so many friends and acquaintances are falling seriously ill or relaxing in perpetual peace because they've decided to just sit there. Or stand there. Or not sit at all. Sitting is worse. And yes, just sitting there can kill you, suddenly, without warning. It's not about sitting quietly somewhere and then getting hit fatally by something, though that's a possibility. 

I'm talking about just sitting there all day.

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Real Relaxation

Correct relaxation is healthy. It doesn't make you sedentary, inactive, desk-bound, or anything like that. In fact, relaxation comes only when you're physically active. The body gets quality rest and relaxation only after being physically challenged, like in a workout. And the body gets really stressed out when it does nothing almost all day. Just sitting there. Or standing. Sedentary living wrecks your ability to sleep.

Don't get me wrong. Neither am I talking about getting busy about things, doing this, doing that. Busy is not the idea of "a healthy, active life" because it also kills if fueled by and/or results to overstress. Particularly, it causes inflammation which may lead to deadly diseases, like autoimmune diseases. Says the NCBI site:

At the intersection of metabolism and immunity, inflammation may be an important link between stress and metabolic disease. Intense stress over-activates the immune system, leading to the imbalance between inflammation and anti-inflammation. Source

Although not all busyness is overstress. It depends on your emotional condition during the overwork. If you love what you're busy with, then it's healthy stress. But if it's about beating deadlines, pleasing superiors, pleasing the ego, proving yourself, showing off, having a competitive spirit, guilt, and the like, it's killing you--physically, emotionally and mentally. Even socially. Stressed out folks are cranky, self-centered, overbearing and fault finders. Here's what WebMD says:

There’s a strong link between workaholics and things like ADHD, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety, and depression. It’s likely that having these disorders makes you prone to working too much. You may use work to avoid depression, or you may work more because your ADHD, OCD, or anxiety won’t let you stop. Likewise, stress can affect your mental well-being and lead to symptoms of anxiety and depression.

It won't show immediately. You'd even feel elated and accomplished with overstress. But the free radical damage in your body system accumulates overtime and soon it strikes without warning. Kaboom! Yup, just sitting there and not just sitting there can both kill you. A lot of seriously ill folks wonder how they got the ailment. 

How Not to Die Just Sitting There

Here are tips I got from my research and my experience how to avoid dying due to just sitting there:

1. Don't get too absorbed in desk work. Time yourself to get up each hour and stretch, walk briskly or climb up and down stairs if you have one. I do some squats, push ups and weights now and then as break from my blogging and this is aside from my regular workouts. 
2. Get rid of the remote. Do everything manually. Get up and move about. Don't rely too much on automatic operations. Do the laundry manually and lift pails of water to fill up laundry basins. Carry dirty laundry water and use for toilet flushing. Clean the bathroom by scrubbing floors and walls with your hands and squatting to reach far corners. 
3. Hobby. Cook often (and enjoy it) or do some regular gardening. Don't use the water hose. Water plants by carrying a pail of water and use a dipper for distributing.
4. Walk around the block. I used to stop awhile from blogging, get out and walk around the street or the block. Then come back to my blog. Helps a lot. Now I just do warm-up breaks right in the room. I remember how I used to sneak into the empty conference room of our company to do my pushups and kicking exercises there.

How Not to Die Not Sitting There

For workaholics who feel rest, relaxation and recreation are sins or stupid ideas, simply find ways to get overstress out of whatever you're doing. If you're busy with work, do it without any compelling reason. I know it's hard, especially if your boss is strict or competitive, and this is why doing a job for long is a definite no-no to me. I prefer doing a business or livelihood I really love, like blogging.

In times I work hard or do some overtime, I do it because I love to, not because a boss requires me to (your egoistic desires can be your boss). Like when I get a good idea from my bible quiet time and feel I need to do an article because many can benefit, I work real hard writing, editing, putting graphics, toying with presentation, and doing research (lots of it). I don't feel overstressed.

Besides, I don't get tied up to my chair and desk and I regularly workout.

Use Your Most Inner Power

A well life is a prosperous life--spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially and financially. Email at personaligyauto@gmail.com to get my e-book (free or with donation) "YOUR POWER WITHIN."

It Determines What Happens

Your best efforts are good, but results are determined by "it."

For everything that happens around you, "it" determines what happens and what doesn't. It's true. So you have to be familiar with this "it." Some folks call it "fate," some call it "destiny." But it's definitely more than these things. Fate depends on how things and events develop which are beyond our control, but this "it" has no regard for that. It doesn't care how things are unfolding. It decides on its own.

Photo by Kameron Kincade on Unsplash.

Only "It" is Real

Destiny, on the other hand, is something definite in the future. Problem is, it's more about major life events and their deeper meanings, not the nitty-gritty of mundane, ordinary details of the now. You don't often call having your coffee spilled on your shirt "destiny," or when you misplace your toothbrush or keys. Destiny is more on marriage, success, status, death, and the like. 

But with things of lesser consequences (at least that's how most people see them), we relegate to either our own doings or luck or accident, all of which are unreal, existing only in our minds. We think our efforts (especially hard efforts) decide what happens or change circumstances. Then we list them under our so-called achievements and congratulate ourselves---or expect others to do so. We still don't get it.

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Our Prayers Don't Change Anything

We also too often imagine that our prayers "change" things. They don't. But "it" does. Yup, everything depends on "it." It decides everything. In fact, most times our prayers seem only to "change" things when they coincide with what "it" wants. It wants everything conforming to its designs and purposes. Absolutely no exception. So a "prayerful" person will effect no change or result if he prays to the contrary. But if you conform to it, you don't need to be "prayerful" (as "prayerful" is understood today) because things just automatically fall into place if you live according to "it."

For both big and small things in life, it's solely responsible. Our best efforts and prayers don't mean a thing. This is why wrong things happen to us even if we don't ask for them in prayer. Who prayed for Covid-19 to happen? Nobody. But it happened anyway. Why? Because "it" allowed it. I suppose hundreds--even thousands--of prayers were said to stop Covid or protect the faithful from catching it. Still, Covid continued and many church ministers were infected. Some even died. Why? "It" allowed it. 

But Efforts and Prayers Have to Continue

And yet, our best efforts and prayers have to go on. Why? Because "it" says so. We cannot go against it. It prevails regardless. The Apostle Paul once said something to this effect:

"For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth."

We cannot do "anything." See that? We are that powerless. And yet this same powerlessness (or weakness) is the key to perfecting power. It has a lot to do with recognizing "its" authority over everything---the authority of God's Truth and Will in the bible---the "It." Get it? Unless we see this truth, we think we have some power to do things, and that deceives us big-time.  

Continued here...

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A well life is a prosperous life--spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, social and financial. And it's hard to get this well-rounded health if you lack the money to sustain it. As the bible says, money is the answer for everything. It's a good servant if you let it serve you. Watch out for how to make money online.

Does Old Age Have to Make You Old?

Ageing does matter, but not growing old.

Just age, don't grow old. That's what my inner self (IS) once told me. And by "age" my IS meant this---stages of an individual's development---which I remember reading somewhere but where exactly escapes me now. The keyword there is "development." That's how we should age. Or getting to your best quality, like aged wine. I like what I saw on the Merriam-Webster site:

To acquire a desirable quality (such as mellowness or ripeness) by standing undisturbed for some time.

Photo by Ignacio Amenábar on Unsplash. 

Undisturbed

Methinks that's the keyword, undisturbed. Like wine kept in barrels and placed in cellars, away from light and the elements, we too should remain "undisturbed" as much as possible. We need to build a "cellar" of refuge and seek sanctuary there. It's not about secluding yourself from the world but keeping undisturbed even amid the hustle and bustle of it all. 

And no one's going to do this for you or give you space for it. You have to aim to be undisturbed in your mind while you go about daily life in the physical. This is the first and most important thing if you don't want to grow old. You achieve this, the other benefits of aging well will follow.

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How do you maintain being undisturbed? 

• God - a non-negotiable.
• wife - she's one flesh with me.
• family - immediate family.
• ministry - includes business. Business is part of my ministry.

I can get angry (why not), but most times I just ignore things that piss me off. I want emotional assets, not liabilities. This is why I manage to be unemotional even when I'm "angry," like being cold-blooded, able to attack without pity yet with zero emotions. The more I avoid being angry. I often opt to be undisturbed.

• Put limits. Limit how much you spend on people and things so you have more than enough for God and family. This includes time, privacy, emotions, care, involvement, listening, etc. I even put limits on distance--how close people can get to me. Anyway, it serves well with the Covid pandemic. More than enough privacy safeguards being undisturbed, although you can maintain your limits even in the midst of a noisy, pushy crowd. It takes practice.
  
  
• Be less busy. People invent a lot of "urgencies" in their lives and end up addicts of busyness. They can't live life without being busy (or pretending to be one) and have lost all remembrance of how it is to be relaxed. Rest, relaxation and calm are all vital ingredients of nurturing an undisturbed disposition. And maintain your stress level to minimal. Opt for healthy stresses.
  
  
• Workout. I regularly workout and meditate to empower my focus, self-control, patience and other character-strengthening traits. Martial arts training helps a lot. For instance, I have developed being very keen on guarding my surroundings while relaxing and keeping calm. This ensures being undisturbed even in risky places.
  
  
• De Gustibus non Disputandum Est. Live and let live. Kanya-kanyang trip yan at walang basagan ng trip. If someone has a different opinion, or you think he's wrong and you're right, keep your mouth shut. Keep your intelligence to yourself, except if it's a matter of life or death, or if the guy asks you your opinion. Correctness is often subjective. Keep away from stupid arguments. Treasure your undisturbed spirit more.

Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. [2 Timothy 2.14]

Yup, the bible is very pro-calm. God has lots of passages on preserving your undisturbed mode intact at all times.

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A well life is a prosperous life--spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, social and financial. And it's hard to get this well-rounded health if you lack the money to sustain it. As the bible says, money is the answer for everything. It's a good servant if you let it serve you. Thus, I invite you to watch this FREE video on my "Vention" blog about earning a living by making money work for you. Pls. click here.

Pursuing Your Own Brand of Success

If it's not your own brand of success, it's NOT worth pursuing. Believe me. You cannot have others' success if you don't share their passion and you're just pursuing their success for the sake of having success. Stop that and look inside you--what really is your passion. What sets your heart on fire? If you do this, it's your brand of success.

Photo by Jad Limcaco on Unsplash.

Success comes in various definitions. You should define yours. If you have found yourself and have done quality consultations with your Maker--GOD--then you should be able to define your own brand of success. Pursue it and live happily ever after. That's genuine success. You find real fulfillment, peace and contentment. You find true happiness.

This is why I believe defining one's own brand of success is vital at school. This means kids have to discover what they really want to do in life as early as preschool and teachers should help them achieve that. Basic Rs (reading rithmitic and writing) are needed, but kids should also be helped with discovering themselves. This cannot happen in one sitting, of course, so it should be gradual but progressive--from grade school, high school to college.

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And this is also why grades and honors mean nothing to me. Just this morning, I met a guy online who dropped out of college but later ended up a successful content and blog writer making big money. And he's even a mentor and webinar host and presentor. Imagine what more could've happened if he had discovered this talent early on in college or even high school. 

Some students may be poor in academics but good in other areas not yet covered by traditional academics--and I'm not just talking about multiple intelligence (MI). MI is still limited to what traditional education offers. So while students fail in traditional schools and develop insecurities and low self-esteem, they're forfeited their right to excel in their own field of interest. Only later in life do they discover their real design and start out late, with all those wasted years in school when they were made to run a race not designed for them.

I was good at drawing cartoons and writing funny and mystery stories since grade school. I was also quite interested in wildlife survival. Unfortunately, these talents had no place in academics. They taught other things in Art and Language subjects that didn't help me develop my talent. For instance, I didn't have interest in grammar because it was taught in a way that didn't tickle my interest. It was dead boring and made me sacred of failing more than inspired me about learning. It was like the uniform we were all made to wear everyday. If you didn't wear it, you wouldn't be allowed inside the school. It's that silly.

But thank God it's not too late. You can still make up and catch up. You may be doing a job which does not really interest you or draw out your passions. You're doing it just for the salary and benefits. You know what you're doing? You're trying to share in your boss' brand of success. Well, he is successful and wealthier. I doubt if you are, too. 

Decide now and ask yourself. What do you really want to do in life? What sets your heart on fire? If given all the money you need for free, would you still do your present job? Or would you do something else that you find truly meaningful?

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A well life is a prosperous life--spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, social and financial. And it's hard to get this well-rounded health if you lack the money to sustain it. As the bible says, money is the answer for everything. It's a good servant if you let it serve you. Thus, I invite you to watch this FREE video on my "Jobless Big-Time" blog about earning a living making money work for you. Pls. click here.

Why Readers Are Healthier, Say Studies

If it only made me more knowledgeable, reading would be less interesting to me, although they say that knowledge is power. I'm not so keen on power. Who cares? Yeah, lots of people would care and be greedy about it, but not me. I have always been very comfy with being low profile and just quietly lingering in the background.

Photo above by Thought Catalog on Unsplash.

But reading does something else. It improves your physical health and even your chances of preventing illnesses and possibly enjoying longevity, all with regular workouts and healthy eating, of course. I've noted this in my dad. He lived till 85 enjoying good heart health--always getting normal results with his cholesterol and triglyceride counts even if he loved fatty food. I suspected that it was his love for reading.

Get fit just right in simple ways.

Read anything you can get your hands on. And I mean anything. Offline or online. Checkout anything that is readable. I remember reading somewhere that one guy read even the labels of all the products he bought (aside from books and magazines) when he started his determined bibliophile journey. Yup, he read even ads.

Anyway, studies have proven that reading makes you healthier. Just watch this (when I say "watch" I mean try to picture this in your mind and make it move like a motion picture):

Less Free Radicals

Reading considerably lessens free radicals in your body. Free radical cells are mostly to blame for a lot of illnesses (about 70 percent due to inflammation), even deadly diseases like cancer, heart failure and diabetes. And stress is the number one cause of free radical cell proliferation. In 2009,  however, health experts at the University of Sussex (UK) found that reading reduced stress. They did this by checking muscle tension and the heart rates of folks while reading. According to the study, merely 6 minutes after reading a book, stressed is reduced by 68 percent.

Obviously, it depends on the type of reading material you have. Don't read anything stressful, like bad news, bashers' comments on your post, depressing emails, violent stories, the like. Although some people may actually be relieved of stress by reading suspense novels on war, crime, violence or zombies. The rule is, read what entertains you. My best suggestion is read the bible.

Longevity 

A study done at the Yale University involving 3,600 folks aged over 50 years (the study lasted for 12 years) found that daily reading for 30 minutes made readers live longer for almost 2 years than those that didn't. Those who read more than 3.5 hours a week reportedly increased longevity by 23 percent while those who read less as often only 17 percent. "The benefits of reading books include a longer life in which to read them," the study experts said.

If I were to interpret that, the desire to read more gave readers the will to live longer. I can relate this very easily to love for bible meditation. The more desperate you are, the stronger your will for LIFE, the one that Jesus gives.

Source for the above findings.

Better Sleep

Better sleep means better health. I don't need to explain this. It's common sense. And reading holds the key to better sleep, experts say, if you opt more for printed, hard copy books instead of those saved in devices and read on screen. Light from screened devices can worsen sleeping habits and lead to other serious illnesses. However, this is not to downgrade materials found online. Gadgets are easier to carry around than books, so it's a wise thing to save articles online or e-books in your phone so you can read anywhere conveniently. 

And there are a lot more information online than in a book. So I suggest you consider both sources--offline and online. Hardcopy books and reading stuff found online.

Here's a tip: Read printed books or e-books while sitting in bed aided by a reading lamp. Don't lie down reading because eye experts recommend books to be positioned at 60 degrees to your eyes which is difficult to do lying down. Or, you may sit on a comfy chair near your bed. I sit on my comfy stool near enough to my bed so that one fall and roll fits me nicely on my bed when I get sleepy.

No More Depression

Suffering from depression? Try being absorbed in a book you're reading, like the bible. Depression can worsen one's health and lead to serious health complications, but it doesn't need to go that far. Because depression makes you feel so alone, reading good books can help make sufferers feel like they're in company with someone, or a company of characters.

Fiction stories that entertain can provide an escape from a world that depresses you. Identifying with the heroism, victories and adventures of a fictional character can alleviate depression during moments of reading. Nonfiction materials, on the other hand, help you with useful information that elicits hope and a positive mindset.

Better Informed

When you're better informed about health through reading and apply what you learn, you have more chances of getting healthier. That's how it usually works. So keep reading books and other materials about health or about your specific health concerns. The United Kingdom National Health Service, in fact, encourages people to join "Reading Well," a program on "Books on Prescription" where medical experts prescribe reading certain self-help books that address specific health problems.

Source of the above infos.

Healthier Meals

When you get to the habit of reading, you'd find yourself reading even the ingredients of the food you eat and drinks you take. Most readers become conscientious and determine to do what is right. Reading develops the habit of correcting personal mistakes and wrong patterns, practices and routines. It happens all the time with me. So, you naturally do not want toxins and unhealthy stuff in your food and drinks the moment you read medical experts and health buffs on this.

Healthier Relationships

Relationships score big in things that make us either healthy or sickly. Good relationships foster good health and bad relationships, bad health. And here's the thing--reading often equips you with good friendship tools. I mean, your broadmindedness makes it easier for you to make friends than enemies. And even with enemies, you're able to put things under control, especially so when you're an avid reader of the bible and get smart with relationships because of it.

Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies. [Psalm 119.98]

With healthier relationships maintained because of the wisdom you get from reading, you become healthier due to lesser relationship stress. Yeah, even with your spouse and kids. Knowledge is definitely power here. Here's what a medical expert has to say about this:

“People involved in loving, philia-based (friendly) relationships have [fewer] doctor visits, shorter hospital visits, have less pain, and have more positive emotions,” according to Dr. Kirtly Parker Jones, of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Utah Healthcare.

She further said that good friendships help us become more resilient in hard times. Source.

Self Confidence

Finally, a habit of reading a lot gives you self-confidence that aids in better physical health, not just mental and social health. A study on self-confidence and health has this to say:

Positive self-esteem is not only seen as a basic feature of mental health, but also as a protective factor that contributes to better health...and the ability to cope with diseases like cancer and heart disease.

In particular, a quiet self-confidence (as against a boastful one, or one that is overconfident) gives you peace of mind, especially in seeing that there's no need to prove yourself to anyone just to be recognized or accepted. Love for reading can help achieve this if it makes you see the wisdom in quiet humility. 

In quietness and confidence is your strength. [Isaiah 30.15]

Any questions about the article? Email me at choysblog@gmail.com.