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  • REALITY
    • The Nature of Reality
    • You never left Home
    • The Self-Aware Universe
    • Univ. Dreaming Itself Awake
    • Is the Universe a Fractal?
    • Evidence That Consciousness Creates Reality: Welcome To The Matrix
    • The Whole of Reality Glows With Life
    • Does time exist? Quantum physics says no
    • Three Scientific Fields That Are Helping to Evolve Humanity’s Worldview
    • Why There Might Be Many More Universes Besides Our Own
    • Paradigms are Made for Shifting
    • The Science of Interconnectedness
    • Distorted Reality – Recalling Different Events After Timelines Merge
    • The Amazing Rise of the Mandela Effect!
    • Expanding Our Awareness to See a Multidimensional Reality
    • The Origin, Purpose, and Destiny of the Earth Game
    • New View of Consciousness/Reality >
      • Evolution and Consciousness
      • Life After Death: Verdict
      • Consciousness/Brain
      • When We Die
      • The Body is a Shell
      • Everyone has a Purpose
      • Life: Spiritual Growth
      • The Problem of Evil
      • Multi-Dimension Universe
      • Conclusion and Notes:
    • A Holographic Universe? >
      • The Holographic Paradigm : All is One
      • The Spiral and the Holographic Matrix
      • The Unified Field and the Illusion of Time: Understanding the Source of Creation
      • The Holofractographic Universe
      • Vacuum Energy: Proof of Free Energy in the Space All Around Us
      • Spiral Vortex – Contemplative Exercise
  • CONSCIOUSNESS
    • The Self-Aware Universe
    • The Relationship between Human Consciousness and Earth Dynamics
    • A Call to Conscious Evolution
    • Electromagnetic Effects on Consciousness
    • Lumen Octave Principles : Language of the Soul
    • A Door Is About To Open!
    • Accessing A Higher Level Of Consciousness (and The Ego: Our Greatest Teacher)
    • Explorers of Higher Dimensions: The Power of Active Consciousness
    • 20 Transformational Truths From Sages Throughout the Ages
    • Mind Over Matter - Consciousness and the Nature of Reality
    • Beyond Space and Time: Quantum Theory Suggests Consciousness Moves on After Death
    • Neurosurgeon Who Doubted Afterlife Now Convinced It's Real
    • A Neurosurgeon’s Journey to Worlds Beyond: An Interview with Dr. Eben Alexander
    • Cosmic Consciousness Phenomenon : The Overview Effect
    • We Are Becoming Consciousness ItSelf
    • Dimensions of Conscious Experience
    • Mysterious Light : A Scientist's Odyssey
    • From Science to God
    • ONENESS : Transcending Duality
    • This Body is Not Me
    • The Rise of Empathic Consciousness
    • Your Body is a Projection of Your Consciousness
    • Evidence That Consciousness Creates Reality: Welcome To The Matrix
    • Human Consciousness Is Taking A Quantum Leap: Lifting of the Veil
    • Leading Neuroscientists & Buddhists Agree: “Consciousness is Everywhere”
    • Be Careful, Consciousness Is Listening!
    • Experiencing a Collective Shift Through Personal Transformation
    • The Illusion of Time and Space
    • The Emergence of Connected Consciousness
    • Reality & Experience: Morphic Fields & The Power Of Choice
    • You Are The One – The Universe is Moving Within You
    • Conscious Creation: Becoming an Observer of Your Own Life
    • The War On Consciousness
    • The Human Heart : The Intelligence of The Heart >
      • Coherence: The Energy and Light from Your Heart
      • The Global Coherence Initiative
      • Enlightenment
    • The Human Brain >
      • The Triune Brain
      • The Split Brain
      • The Holographic Brain
      • Whole Brain Synchronization : Binaural Beats
      • Mysterious Brain Of Daniel Tammet
      • Consciousness/Brain
      • What and Where is Consciousness?
      • The Holographic Paradigm : All is One
      • Electromagnetic Effects on Consciousness
      • Exploring the Nature of Mind and our Holographic Brain
      • Six Intriguing Types of Synesthesia
      • Mysteries of the Pineal Gland Ignored by Mainstream Science and Research
  • HUMANITY
    • Humanity : Body, Mind, Soul and Spirit >
      • Who Are You?:Deepak Chopra
      • Solar Flares Affect Humans
      • Univ. Unconditional Love
      • A Prayer for the World
      • Overcome the Ego
      • Etheric Antenna: Chakras
      • Your Aura and 12 Chakras: Keys to the Kingdom
      • The Seven Bodies of Man
      • The Journey
      • A Spiritual Pilgrimage
      • Science of the Soul
      • We are Beings of Light
      • Lumen Octave Principles : Language of the Soul
      • God is Very Much Alive
      • Tao: Your Cosmic Connection and Spiritual Contract
      • The Three Births of the Human Spirit
      • Unconditional Love?
      • The Relationship between Science and Spirituality
      • How Einstein Saw the World
      • Conscious Partnership with Earth
      • Infogr: Control your Dreams
      • Your Cells When You Experience Happiness
      • Aligning the Trinity – Body, Mind and Spirit
      • Being Aware of Our Energy
      • The Greatest Story Never Told
      • The Alchemy of Groups
      • Inevitable Change – Shattering Our Attachment to ‘Sameness’
    • Children/Education >
      • Education and the Death of Creativity
      • A Message From The Children
      • Children of the New Dream
      • It’s Time to Unleash Creativity in Our Schools
    • DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid): >
      • DNA Can Be Reprogrammed by Words and Frequencies
      • Controversial DNA Discoveries
      • Evolution : The Body's Intelligence
      • Evolution is speeding up
      • Human Energy Field and DNA
      • Everything You Are, Have Been And Ever Will Be Is About Frequency, And Your DNA Is The Ultimate Antenna
      • Forgotten In Time: The Ancient Solfeggio Frequencies
      • The Human Genome – Perception Directly Controls Gene Activity
      • Leonardo da Vinci and The New Biology
    • The Awakening >
      • The Dark Night Of The Soul
      • The Song of the Soul Group
      • The SupraMental Awakening and Planetary Hope
      • Univ. Dreaming Itself Awake
      • When Awakening Begins
      • The Veil of Forgetfulness
      • Pr. of Personal Transformation
      • Time To Pay Attention To Who You Are/Where You Are Going
      • Before Beginning of Universe .. You Were Still There
      • 2012 Visionaries
      • Awaken, Children of Earth!
      • Time : A Musical
      • Waking Up Is So Hard To Do… Alone
      • Swami’s State of the Universe 2015
      • A Need and An Ecstasy
      • Full Moon In Scorpio - An Invitation To Emergence
      • Something Extraordinary Is Happening In The World
      • 3 States of Mind to Embrace the Coming Energy
      • The Sacred Garden
      • Being Our Experience
      • We were made for these times
      • Are You a Bridge Between Two Worlds?
      • Choose Love – and Be the Change!
      • Timekeepers of the Human Experiment
      • The Starseed Mission: A Practical Guide to the Pros and Cons in One’s Awakening
      • What's the Point of Life? Why are we here?
      • Reflections On The Year That Was 2018
    • Ascension/Evolution >
      • The Gathering of the Eagles >
        • Foreword and Introduction
        • PT 1 : Chapt 1 : THE LITTLEST HOBO
        • PT 1 : Chapt 2 : "I QUIT"
        • PT 1 : Chapt 3 : WILL THE REAL POST OP NURSE PLEASE STAND UP
        • PT 1 : Chapt 4 : LAST WEEK I WOULD HAVE SAID YOU WERE CRAZY
        • PT 1 : Chapt 5 : ON THE ROAD AGAIN
        • PT 1 : Chapt 6 : THE SPORTSMAN CAFE
        • PT 1 : Chapt 7 : CHANGE OF LIFE
        • PT 1 : Chapt 8 : IF IT'S TUESDAY, THIS MUST BE HOLLAND
        • PT 1 : Chapt 9: NO SHAME TO BE POOR/Epilogue
        • PT 2 : Chapt 10 : FOR THE HARVEST OF THE EARTH IS RIPE
        • PT 2 : Chapt 11 : THE NEW GARDEN
        • PT 2 : Chapt 12 : "WHAT'S MINE'S MY OWN"
        • PT 2 : Chapt 13 : THE GUIDING LIGHT
        • PT 2 : Chapt 14 : THE PEOPLE
        • The Prince of Hope
      • Residing in the 5th Dimension
      • Vibrational Acceleration
      • Homo Divinicus: to come
      • 5th Dimension Consciousness
      • The Ride Has Just Begun!
      • Raising Your Vibration
      • Spiritual Evolution: Divine Plan
      • Ascension: The Larger Picture
      • 2013: The Gateway of LIGHT
      • The “Seer” of all Things
      • Spont. Evolution Has Arrived!
      • Compassion: Ascension Key
      • Who Are We Becoming?
      • Shifting Paradigms
      • Creating a New Paradigm
      • Blueprint for Ascension
      • Ascension Revisited
      • 'The Quantum Leap' by Solara
      • I Surrender to the Infinite that is Within Me
      • Ascension and the Fifth Dimensional Network
      • Why It’s Time To Accept Humanity’s Power of Creation and The Soul’s Journey
      • Transformation
      • “We Are Living In The Most Important Time In The History Of Our Universe”
      • Accelerating Our Collective Emergence into a New Paradigm
      • The Greatest Spiritual Event of Our Time According to Rudolph Steiner
      • Dolores Cannon – THE EVENT Information
    • Sandra Walter-Asc. Guide
    • Human Body of Light >
      • Spark of Light At Conception
      • Biophotons: The Human Body Emits, Communicates with, and is Made from Light
      • We Are Beings of Light
      • Are Humans Solar Powered?
      • Cells use light to communicate
      • Your Body Literally Glows With Light
      • Light
    • Ancient Knowledge/Civilisations >
      • Lost Civilizations Existed
      • Houston anthropologist reveals irrefutable proof that recorded history is wrong
      • The Return of the Elder Race & Opening the Gateway of the Fifth Kingdom
      • Quest for the People of the Secret
      • The skeletal remains of giants found all over the world
    • The Spirit World >
      • Astral Dynamics : The Silver Cord
      • Life Between Lives
      • Cycles of Soul Existence
      • The Soul’s Journey After Death
      • Reincarnation: 10 things everyone should know about Reincarnation >
        • Reincarnation: The 35 Steps of Soul Evolution
      • Near Death Experiences >
        • Neurosurgeon Who Doubted Afterlife Now Convinced It's Real
        • The NDE and the Silver Cord
        • Rev. Dr George Rodonaia's Unusual NDE
        • Shared Death Experiences
        • Groups of People Can Share a Single NDE
        • 'Shared Death Experience' Study
      • Akashic Records / Akashic Field / Book of Life >
        • A Database That Contains A Record Of The Soul’s Journey: The Akashic Records
        • Edgar Cayce: Readings from Akashic Records >
          • Edgar Cayce : 'The Sleeping Prophet'
          • The Body - Temple of God ; Chakras
          • Angels and Archangels ; The Christ ; Humanity ; Death
          • Mary Magdalene
          • Moving into the New Paradigm
          • The Future
          • The Book of Revelation
          • Consciousness
          • Human Origins
          • The Past Lives of Jesus
  • CHANNELLED INFORMATION
    • Archangel Michael speaks >
      • STAGES OF AWARENESS ON PATH OF ASCENSION
      • HOLD STEADY, BELOVEDS
      • WHO YOU ARE
      • VICTIM OR VICTOR?
      • PERFECTING YOUR SKILLS AS A CO-CREATOR
      • THE PATH OF ASCENSION IS THE PATH TO FREEDOM
      • LOVE IS A NATURAL STATE OF BEING
      • 2013 IN REVIEW - A YEAR OF TRANSFORMATION
      • ARE YOU READY TO EMBODY YOUR SACRED FIRE ENERGY?
      • RITUAL OF PASSAGE INTO 5th DIMENSIONAL REALITY
      • CREATING YOUR SPHERE OF HEAVENLY LIGHT
      • SPIRITUAL REUNION
      • ANGELS OF MERCY
      • NEW RAYS OF INDIVID EXPRESSION
      • EARTH’S SEED ATOM RECORD-KEEPER CRYSTALS
      • ENHANCING YOUR POWER TO MANIFEST
      • THE ILLUSION OF FEAR
      • BECOMING SOUL-INFUSED PERSONALITY
      • DOWNLOADING YOUR NEW DIVINE BLUEPRINT
      • DECISION TIME : THE FUTURE IS NOW
      • YOUR LIGHT CLOAK OF MANY COLORS AWAITS YOU
      • WILL YOU BE AMONG THE CHOSEN?
      • BECOMING A PRACTICAL MYSTIC
      • FINE-TUNING YOUR SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
      • SPIRITUAL PHILOSOPHY FOR EVOLVING HUMANITY
      • PYRAMIDS OF LIGHT - THE LIGHT PATHWAY OF RETURN
      • OPENING THE SEVEN SEALS OF GOD-CONSCIOUSNESS
      • DEMYSTIFYING DEATH
      • WE 0FFER YOU A STREAM OF LOVE/LIGHT FROM OUR HEART TO YOURS
      • EVOLUTION OF THE BODILY FORM AND ASCENSION IN CONSCIOUSNESS
      • THE SEARCHLIGHT OF THE SOUL * YOUR TWELVE RAY CREATOR WHEEL
      • ACCESSING YOUR HIGHER POWER POTENTIAL
      • WHAT IS SPIRIT?
      • INTEGRATED KNOWLEDGE BECOMES WISDOM
      • THE FIVE KINGDOMS/DIMENSIONS FOR THIS ROUND OF EARTHLY ASCENSION
      • THE LAW OF RESPONSIVE RETURN
      • EMBRACING THE POWER OF LOVE
      • WARRIORS OF LIGHT: PROACTIVE, LOVINGLY ASSERTIVE
      • THE LAW OF ATTRACTION
      • OPEN LETTER TO ASCENDING STARSEED SOULS
      • AVATARS * ASCENDED MASTERS * GREAT BEINGS OF LIGHT
      • BECOMING AN EMISSARY OF LIGHT
      • HARMONIZING THE PHYSICAL * EMOTIONAL * MENTAL BODIES
      • THE FIERY FORCES OF CREATION ARE SWEEPING THE EARTH
      • A VISION FOR THE FUTURE
      • UNIFIED SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
      • ARE YOU A STARSEED WAYSHOWER?
      • THE NEXT LEVEL OF SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
      • THE PHYSICAL VESSEL: A WONDROUS, SACRED CREATION
      • RELATIONSHIPS AND YOUR SACRED UNION
      • ARE YOU READY FOR LIBERATION?
      • PERFECTING YOUR SKILLS AS A COCREATOR
      • CREATING A 'NEW EMPOWERED YOU'
      • SEEKING PEACE FROM WITHIN
      • THE ECSTASY OF SACRED LOVE
      • ACCESSING THE EARTH’S MEMORY SEED ATOM CRYSTALS
      • ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A COMMITMENT?
      • EMBRACING ALL FACETS OF GOD CONSCIOUSNESS
      • OPENING THE PORTAL TO YOUR SACRED HEART
      • ARE YOU READY?
      • THE SPIRALING PATH OF ASCENSION
      • YOU ARE IN THE MIDST OF A SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION
      • YOU ARE A STAR OF COSMIC SACRED FIRE
      • ENHANCING YOUR PERSONAL GOD ESSENCE
      • YOUR CONNECTION TO YOUR HOLY MENTAL SELF
      • THREE GOD RAYS: DIVINE WILL * DIVINE LOVE * DIVINE INTELLIGENCE
      • THE MYSTERY OF THE VESICA PISCIS
      • THE POWER AND MAJESTY OF THE ELEMENTS
      • DEVELOPING NON-ATTACHMENT
      • ENHANCING YOUR POWER TO MANIFEST
    • Archangel Uriel >
      • Be The Energy for an Ascending Earth
      • The Balance of Creator and Co-Creator
      • In the Acceleration
    • The Angels, through Satya >
      • Who Is Your Angel ?
      • How to dialogue with the Angels
      • The Love
      • The Joy, the Smile and the Gratitude
      • The Nature and the Breathing
      • The Awakening of the Soul
      • Recognize and express own Essence
    • The Founders >
      • Moving to the Next Level
      • The Founders on the Nature of Timelessness
    • Through Sal Rachele >
      • Leah and Sananda >
        • Extending God’s Creation into the Physical
    • Through channel Ken Carey: >
      • The Awakening (that we asked for)
    • Ra and Q'uo: The Law of One >
      • Ra : Ra's History
      • Ra: Before the Veil of Forgetfulness
      • Ra : Wanderers
      • Ra : Harvest
      • Ra: Session 14 of the Law of One
      • The Universe According to Ra
      • Ra's Work on Earth
      • Q'uo : Ascension
      • Q'uo : Jesus the Christ and the Buddha
      • Q'uo : Angels
      • Q'uo : Primary Development of the Creation'
      • Q'uo : Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine
      • Q'uo : Are you doing what you came to do?
    • Seth >
      • Seth Speaks about God
      • Creation of Matter
    • Kryon : Who is Kryon? .... and Who are We? >
      • The Future is Quantum | An interview with Lee Carroll
      • 2013 - The Transition Begins
      • Thru Eyes of Ascension - 1
      • 7 Human Illusions of God
      • Thru Eyes of Ascension - 2
      • Perceptions of God
      • Recalibration of the Universe
      • Big Picture-You Are Not Alone!
      • The Elusive Akash
      • The Truth About DNA
      • Beginning Activation of DNA
      • The Timing of Creation
      • Demystifying the New Age - 1
      • Demystifying the New Age - 3
      • Soul Journeying - Part 1
      • Soul Journeying - Part 2
      • Physics in the Next 500 Years
      • Soul Communication - Part 1
      • Soul Communication - Part 2
      • The Three Winds
      • The Interdimensional Universe
      • The Physics of Consciousness - The Future Revealed
      • Revelations of Darkness
      • The Energy of the Future
      • The Human Soul Revealed
      • Common Questions from NON-LIGHTWORKERS
      • The Old Soul Defined
      • J. O. P. B.
      • How Big is God?
      • The Triad
      • The Fast-Track Systems
      • The Future of DNA
      • The Dysfunction of Darkness
      • Quantum Patterning
      • Hearing the Voice of Spirit - The Dark and Light BalanceNew Page
      • The Cosmic Lattice - Part 1
      • The Cosmic Lattice - Part 2
      • The Fundamental Fractal
      • The Field - Part One
      • The Field - Part Two
      • Wild Cards of the Planet
      • The Relationship to Gaia
      • When The Butterfly Flaps its Wings
      • Change
      • Five Deceptions of the Old Energy
      • Unexpected Change
      • New Light
      • The Five Alignments
      • The State of The Earth
      • Going from Dark to Light
      • The Addictive Old Energy
      • The Nodes and Nulls of Earth Part One
      • The Nodes and Nulls of Earth Part Two
      • Becoming Multidimensional
      • Synchronicity - The Way It Works
      • Who You Are - 2018
      • Peeling the Onion of Reality
      • The History of Humanity
      • Instructing the Akash
      • Akashic Evolution
      • Fake News!
      • Predictions
      • Evolution - Future Scenarios
      • Wisdom
      • The Seven Gifts
  • EARTH
    • EARTH articles: >
      • Earth Changes and 2012
      • The Relationship between Human Consciousness and Earth Dynamics
      • Earth: Geologic Primer
      • Infogr: Yellowstone
      • Healing Mother Earth
      • Earth's Inaudible Voice
      • The Mysteries of Water
      • Oceans:Shocking Decline
      • Geobiology : Earth Energies That Affect Our Lives
      • Scientists warn that Earth faces severe water shortages within a generation
      • Our Oceans Are Dying
      • Infrasound: "There is geometry in the humming of the strings, there is music in the spacing of the spheres"
      • Is Science Finally Catching Up to What the Ancients Knew About Crystals?
      • Can our Intentions Heal the Water?
      • Does Mother Nature Know What She is Doing?
      • The secret life of trees: Thinking, caring and using the 'wood-wide web' to communicate
      • Scientists find jet stream in Earth’s core
      • Scientists: Earth’s Magnetic Fields Carry Biologically Relevant Information That ‘Connects All Living Systems’
      • Waking Up to the Sacred in Nature and Reclaiming Our Earth Soul
      • Conscious Partnership with Earth
      • Honoring The Solstice
      • Vietnamese farmer discovers a spectacular world
    • EARTH/SPACE articles: >
      • Space Weather >
        • Tracking Space Weather from the Sun to the Earth (NASA)
      • Plasma, Plasma, Everywhere
      • Unusual Sounds Reported Worldwide - What Are They?
      • Do 'Outside Forces' Affect Earth?
      • Speed of the Earth?
      • Planetary Challenges and Spiritual Evolution
      • PlanetoPhysical State of the Earth and Life
      • Spirals : Earth/Space
      • Space-Time Vortex
      • Electromag. Spectrum
      • Solstices and Equinoxes
      • Earth/Sun Connection
      • Breach in Magnetic Field
      • Change in Earth's Gravity
      • Moon : Effects on Earth
      • Plasma tubes surround Earth
      • Infographic : EARTH/SPACE
      • Infographic : Evolution of Food in Space
  • OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
    • THE SUN - Our Star >
      • Infogr: Sunstorms! / Sun Flare
      • The Sun : Solar Activity >
        • How Solar Flares Affect Humans
        • Mystery of the Sun's Corona
        • Massive Plasma Waves Sweep the Sun
        • Lately, the Sun has been behaving a bit strangely
        • Scientists predict rare 'hibernation' of sunspots
        • Scientists Prove Existence of ‘Magnetic Ropes’ that Cause Solar Storms
        • Sun/Earth Relationship
        • Magnetic Portals connect Earth to the Sun
        • Images From Sun’s Edge Reveal Origins of Solar Wind
        • Total Solar Eclipse 21 August 2017
        • The Awakening Solar Intelligence
    • Infogr: Jupiter and Venus
    • Infogr: Solar System
    • Infogr: Asteroid Belt
    • Evolving Solar System / 2012
    • Galaxy, Solar System and Harmonic Resonance
    • Magnetic Bubbles at Edge of Solar System
    • The Seven Bodies of Man
    • Our Solar System's Tail
    • Water in the Solar System: Water, Water, Everywhere!
    • Something is Affecting the Entire Solar System
    • Solar system replica built by space enthusiasts in Nevada Desert - 11km (7 mi) wide
    • Jupiter : 'Brand-new and unexpected' discoveries
    • The Helical Dynamics of the Solar System
  • MILKY WAY GALAXY
    • Infogr: The Milky Way
    • Infogr: Galaxy Full of Planets
    • Massive Outburst in Neighbor Galaxy Surprises Astronomers
    • Sirius and Human History
    • Earthquakes on Stars in the Milky Way
    • Betelgeuse : Supernova?
    • Galactic Centre : >
      • Strange Rumblings at the Centre of our Galaxy
      • Massive Outflows Pouring Out Of Milky Way’s Center
      • Milky Way’s Black Hole Shows Signs of Increased Chatter
      • Scientists Identify Cosmic Energy Accelerator at the Galactic Center
      • Milky Way Galaxy may be more enormous than ever imagined
  • UNIVERSE
    • The Unified Field and the Illusion of Time: Understanding the Source of Creation
    • The Universe Is A 'Giant Brain'
    • The Self-Aware Universe
    • The New Cosmology
    • How Large is Universe?
    • Laniakea: Our Home Supercluster
    • The Interdimensional Universe
    • Universe : YouTube videos
    • Electric Universe/Plasma Cosmology >
      • What is Plasma?
      • Plasma; 99.999% of Universe
      • Plasma, Plasma, Everywhere
      • Elect. in Space: Hannes Alfvén
      • Aether: True Electric Current?
      • The Simple Electric Universe
      • The Electric Universe
      • Exploring Electric Universe
      • Comets and Electric Universe
      • The Electric Universe - A Synopsis
  • 2012 PROPHECIES and the coming changes
    • The Prophecies Are Now
    • What is Happening in 2012?
    • Edgar Cayce : 'The Sleeping Prophet' >
      • Moving into the New Paradigm
      • The Future
      • The Book of Revelation
    • The NDE and the Future >
      • Dr Kenneth Ring
      • Louis Famoso
      • Betty J Eadie
    • The Great Cross at Hendaye
    • Hindu Prophecy
    • Nostradamus
    • Journey Into A New Dimension - Full Text
    • Native American Prophecies >
      • Cherokee Prophecies
      • Chippewa Prophecies
      • Hopi Prophecies >
        • The Ancient Hopi Message about Water
      • Lakota Sioux Prophecies
      • Mohawk Prophecies
      • Onondaga Prophecies
      • Chief Seattle's Letter to the American President, 1852
    • Mayan Calendar >
      • José Arguelles
      • Ian Xel Lungold
      • Drunvalo Melchizedek
      • Carl Johan Calleman
      • Crystalinks
    • Incas: The Awakening
    • The Mystery of the Crystal Skulls
  • HEALTH and HEALING
    • Vibrational Healing : All is Energy
    • Miraculous Healing Using the Power of the Mind is Possible – Here’s Why
    • Lucid Dream Healing Experiences
    • Fight Inflammation and Chronic Disease by Walking Barefoot on the Earth
    • The Shaman Within: Channeling Universal Life Force to Heal Your Body
    • Law of Similarities/Doctrine of Signatures: Foods that look like the organ they heal
    • RECONNECTIVE HEALING® and THE RECONNECTION® >
      • Reconnective Healing®/The Reconnection®/Science
    • QUANTUM-TOUCH® HEALING
    • REIKI HEALING
    • SPIRITUAL HEALING
    • ACUPUNCTURE: Ancient healing traditions: Science finally proves meridians exist
    • SOUND THERAPY >
      • Rediscovering the Art and Science of Sound Therapy
      • Healing Benefits of Music
      • 7 Health Benefits of Vibroacoustic Therapy
      • Forgotten In Time: The Ancient Solfeggio Frequencies
  • SACRED GEOMETRY : Beginner's Guide
    • Sacred Geometry : Language of Light
    • The Christ Grid
    • The Spiral and the Holographic Matrix
    • Star Tetrahedron (Merkaba)
    • Form and the Power of One
    • Crop Circles Explained
    • Sacred Geometry - The Building Blocks of the Universe
  • NUMBERS
    • 11:11 Synchronicity
    • Oneness, Manifestation and Numbers
    • The Numerology of 2012
    • The Pythagorean Science of Numbers
  • SYNCHRONICITY
    • Synchronicity And The Singularity
    • 11:11 Synchronicity
    • Sound, Synchronicity and Shamanism
  • MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES
    • Hidden Costs of Light Pollution
    • Atheist Has Dream of Heaven
    • Secrets Of the Third Eye
    • Esoteric Meaning of Christmas
    • The Greatest Story Never Told
    • Space/Energy for 21st Century
    • Symphony of Science
    • Alchemy : Enlightenment
    • Mystery of Gothic Cathedrals
    • Touch of the Master's Hand
    • Top Regrets of Dying Patients
    • Prayer for those Going Home
    • The Frequency of Gratitude
    • Emergence of Truth in Media
    • The Law of Attraction
    • Snakes of Living Light
    • Australian physicist proposes theory that building blocks of life are information, not chemicals
    • World-Changing Technology
    • Am I Living My Life Purpose as a Light Worker?
    • The Christmas Hope: a to-do list for a better world
    • What Do You Want for Christmas… Really?
    • Many Interacting Worlds Theory
    • Equinox, New Moon, Total Solar Eclipse
    • Inventor Releases Open Source Plans to Usher in the Maker Culture
    • When You Have the Right Vibe, It’s Not a Coincidence: Synchronicities, Energy Healing, and Other Strangeness in the Field
    • Ancient Tibet, "Star Wars" and Jedi training
    • Transforming Our Communities Ourselves With Technology
    • Lessons on living and dying from a man who has seen 12,000 deaths
    • The Old Phone
    • Pyramid Power: Harnessing the Energetic Fields of Pyramids
    • How to Benefit from Spending Time Alone
    • What 90-somethings regret most
    • You Don’t Have To Do Holiday Stuff You Hate
    • Ram Dass >
      • Be Love Now
      • I am Loving Awareness
  • OTHER ARTICLES
    • ARTICLES by Zen Gardner >
      • Scattered Seedlings Restoring the Earth
      • Our Spirit Speaks The Loudest
      • Synchronicity / Singularity
      • Alone, Or Strategically Placed?
      • Transcending Language and the Leap of Faith
      • Language: Vibrational Key to Conscious Activation
      • The Manipulated Matrix Of Language
      • The Unstoppable Liberation of Humanity
      • The Age of Madness and Enlightenment
      • When Worlds Divide
      • Slipping Into The Cosmos
      • Imagination – Access to the Infinite
      • The Awakening – Star Across the Bow of Illusion
      • The Awakening Springs Unstoppable
      • We Were Born To Create
      • Reaching the Tipping Point – It’s Up to Each of Us
      • The Matrix Program is Crashing
      • The Tipping Point at the Crossroads of Time
      • Is Cosmic Music Unlocking The Matrix?
      • Living In The Climax Of Awakening Ages
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    • Christmas Message 2011
What 90-somethings regret most
Lydia Sohn

Picture
© Cristian Newman on Unsplash

I interviewed the oldest people I know. Their responses contradict popular research about aging and happiness.

My preconceptions about older people first began to crumble when one of my congregants, a woman in her 80s, came into my office seeking pastoral care. She had been widowed for several years but the reason for her distress was not the loss of her husband. It was her falling in love with a married man. As she shared her story with me over a cup of tea and Kleenex, I tried to keep a professional and compassionate countenance, though, internally, I was bewildered by the realization that even into their 80s, people still fall for one another in that teenage, butterflies-in-the-stomach kind of way.

One of the strange and wonderful features of my job as a minister is that I get to be a confidant and advisor to people at all stages of life. I've worked with people who are double and even triple my age. Experience like this is rare; our economic structure and workforce are stratified, and most people are employed within their own demographics. But because I'm a minister in a mainline denomination with an aging base, the people I primarily interact with are over the age of 60. I came into my job assuming that I, a Korean-American woman in my mid-30s, would not be able to connect with these people - they're from a completely different racial and cultural background than me. It did not take long for me to discover how very wrong I was.

We all have joys, hopes, fears and longings that never go away no matter how old we get. Until recently, I mistakenly associated deep yearnings and ambitions with the energy and idealism of youth. My subconscious and unexamined assumption was that the elderly transcend these desires because they become more stoic and sage-like over time. Or the opposite: they become disillusioned by life and gradually shed their vibrancy and vitality.

When I initially realized that my assumptions might be wrong, I set out to research the internal lives of older people. Who really were they, and what had they learned in life? Using my congregation as a resource, I interviewed several members in their 90s, with a pen, notebook, a listening ear and a promise to keep everyone anonymous. I did not hold back, asking them burning questions about their fears, hopes, sex lives or lack thereof. Fortunately, I had willing participants. Many of them were flattered by my interest, as America tends to forget people as they age.

I began each conversation by asking if they had any regrets. By this point, they'd lived long enough to look at life from multiple angles so I knew their responses would be meaningful. Most of their regrets revolved around their families. They wished relationships, either with their children or between their children, turned out differently. These relational fractures, I could see on their faces, still caused them much pain and sorrow. One of my interviewees has two children who haven't seen or spoken to each other for over two decades. She lamented that this, among all the mistakes and regrets she could bring to mind, was the single thing keeping her up at night.

I then moved on to the happiest moments of their lives. Every single one of these 90-something-year-olds, all of whom are widowed, recalled a time when their spouses were still alive and their children were younger and living at home. As a busy young mom and working professional who frequently fantasizes about the faraway, imagined pleasures of retirement, I quickly responded, "But weren't those the most stressful times of your lives?" Yes of course, they all agreed. But there was no doubt that those days were also the happiest.

Their responses intrigued me. They contradicted a well-known article on happiness in The Economist, "The U-bend of Life". The article went viral in 2010 and was a common conversation topic among my family and friends. Its counter-intuitive yet completely reasonable analyses seemed to resonate with my generation.

The theory of the "U-bend" came about as researchers discovered consistent findings from several independent research projects on happiness and well-being around the world. They concluded that happiness, pleasure and enjoyment are most tenuous during the middle ages of life, starting in our 20s with depression peaking at 46 - which the author described as "middle-age-misery". The happiness of youth however, not only returned but was experienced at higher levels in subjects' 70s. Researchers hypothesized that middle-age-misery was due to the overwhelming number of familial, professional and financial demands during these years. Following a happiness dip in middle age, researchers concluded that we become more self-accepting, less ambitious and more mindful of living in the present moment (instead of the future) as we approach our 70s.

My interviewees' responses contradicted the popular "U-bend" theory. Why? Perhaps happiness is more complex than we thought. Maybe our understanding of what makes us happy changes as we age. When we're younger, perhaps we think of happiness as a feeling instead of a state of fulfillment, meaning, or abundance - which my interviewees were associating it with. Regardless, their responses came as a sobering reminder to fully appreciate and soak in these chaotic days of diaper changes, messiness and minimal me-time. They may just end up being my happiest moments.

I was dying to ask if their spouses (of many decades, in most cases) were really the loves of their lives. As it turns out, this was true for some and not for others. In both cases, though, they kept trying to make their marriages work. I got the sense from their responses that after they had children, their marriages became much less important to their happiness than the overall nuclear family dynamic. This focus on the family unit, however, did not mean their sexual and romantic passion vanished. They still longed to be wooed and pursued. They still experienced intense attraction to people who were not their spouses and continue to experience intense attraction for others to this day. Of course, sex becomes more tiresome, as well as masturbation, but their desire for companionship is just as prominent as it was during the height of their youth.

My interviewees' thoughts on beauty and aging were also varied - their physical appearance only mattered insofar as it mattered to them when they were younger. Those who were valued for their good looks or athleticism experienced much more grief in regards to their current bodies than those who derived confidence from qualities that were much less time-fixed. One interviewee, for example, was well-known in her community for being a writer and columnist in local newspapers. When I asked her if she was saddened by her aging appearance, she responded, "Well, I never thought I was pretty to begin with so, no." The ones who did experience greater negative emotions about aging, though, shared that the peak of that grief occurred in their 70s and has diminished since then.

The same woman who told me she wasn't bothered by her aging appearance also shared that she wasn't afraid of death but of dying. I found this to be a profound distinction. She believed in an afterlife, as one might expect given that she belongs to a church. She felt sure that she would, in one way or another, be well taken care of after her time here came to an end. She is still very physically and mentally healthy, so it was that final leg of her journey that worried her. Would she be restricted to a hospital bed, just a mess of tubes and needles? Would she still recognize family and friends? Would she be in constant pain? Being old didn't bother her until it affected the quality of her life in an incredibly detrimental way. In fact, being old, she shared, brought a lot of advantages: more time, more perspective, less hustling to be the best and most successful, and an urgency to strengthen the important relationships in her life.

The radical relationship-based orientation of all my subjects caught me by surprise. As someone entering the height of my career, I expend much more energy on work than on relationships. And when I imagine my future, I envision what I will have accomplished rather than the quality of my interactions with those who are most important to me. These 90-something-year-olds emphasize the opposite when they look back on their lives. Their joys and regrets have nothing to do with their careers, but with their parents, children, spouses and friends. Put simply, when I asked one person, "Do you wish you accomplished more?", he responded, "No, I wished I loved more."

My conversations challenged me. I certainly won't be giving up my job to hang out with my family more because I also recognize that satisfying careers and financial stability are great sources of fulfillment - which, in turn, affect family well-being. But these different perspectives helped me focus on what really matters in the face of competing responsibilities and priorities. That sermon really does not have to be the best sermon in the world when my son is starving for my attention. My husband really does not need to get the highest-paying job he can find if that means I can spend more time with him.

However, the biggest impact they left on me was not reprioritization but being okay with aging. I confess that prior to my conversations, I had an intense fear about growing old. This, I realize, was what motivated me to begin this research in the first place. I assumed the elderly lost their vibrancy and thirst for life. That couldn't be further from the truth. They still laugh like crazy, fall in love like mad and pursue happiness fiercely.


https://www.sott.net/article/392762-What-90-somethings-regret-most
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