I have been spending some serious time lately trying to come up with better ways to spend the remaining time of my life here on earth.  How can I be happier and less stressful about my life in particular and in general the world today?

Several reasons probably prompted this search. One is that I turned 70 not long ago. This birthday hit me much harder than any other. I don’t think I really had a mid-life crisis so maybe this is my version of it to be called late-life crisis.  The other primary reason is my recent brain trauma event of which I am still recovering and could have ended my life.  These two events, along with probably many other more minor factors has just got me deeply thinking about how I have lived my life and how I can make it better in my final years.

One of the conclusions I have come to is that I just spend too much time focusing on what is wrong with things. My first thoughts on just about any topic is to find something to make the situation better. That is my contrarian nature that gives me a particular insight about many things and that in itself is a good thing.  But sometimes it just gets in the way of just enjoying life.  Another root cause is that I overthink way too much. Somethings should just be enjoyed for what they are without considering how to make them better and some should just be accepted as they are without a lot of thought.

Miscommunications is a big part of my dealings with others and that often bothers me. This misunderstanding is probably due to my apparent Asperger’s Syndrome. I forget that my way of looking at things is often quite different from others. For instance, I too often assume that others are uncaring about a situation because they don’t know the details that I do. Healthcare and our nation’s military spending are two of the more serious topics in this arena.  I think we all have a tendency to egocentrically put our own perspective on to others so it’s worth remembering that everyone’s attention shows the world in a particular way, and what gets spotlighted differs from person to person. I need to understand that going forward.

These are just a few of the topics that have been stewing in my mind lately. I’m sure I will have much more to say about other areas in the coming months.  In the meantime, I will try my darndest to chill out a little more and not let things that I have little control over  get me so upset. I think that is a pretty good start.

I would love to hear some of the things that you struggle with that get in the way of a happier life. We can all learn something from each other on this topic.