Ok so summer is over! If you can really call the months of constant rain and misery summer. We now have to wait until next year for even the hope of that unfamiliar yellow orb in the sky to grace us with its presence and offer us a little heat. We now move into autumn “the Evening of the Seasons”. Although it means that summer has passed, there are still many great things about the Autumn season. It’s a time of harvesting, of reaping in the crops which you’ve cultivated over the passed year. A time to literally enjoy the fruits of your labour. It’s also a time of vivid colours where the leaves change from shades of green to all the colours of the rainbow:
“How beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and
colour are their last days.”
~John Burroughs
As we enter into this sad/happy season I’m always reminded of how it mirrors the autumn seasons in our lives, especially the autumn seasons in our health. What will my autumn days be like? What will be the fruits of my labour? What sort of light or colour will I have in my last days?
This is a common question for many men. What sort of shape will I be in when it comes to the autumn of my years? When we look around there is much to be concerned about. We see the elderly unable to walk for themselves, taking a bucket load of tablets for a long list of conditions and probably worst of all, we fear the possibility of Dementia.
The great news is that none of these illnesses are predetermined and there is much that we can do in the spring & summer to provide a great autumn.
I’ve recently been invited to lecture at the Loma Linda University in California. Loma Linda is a unique place in the US because it is the only area in the US to have the title “Blue-Zone”.
There are 5 blue zones on the planet. They are areas where people tend to live longer & healthier lives, they have 10x the number centenarians as the average community in that country. The question must be, Why?
Well, when you look at them there are several things that strike you immediately.
- They have a very low fat, plant-based diet, almost vegan. They don’t drink alcohol or smoke.
- They exercise regularly. Last time I was there I met a woman who was 102 who walked for 2hrs each day. When I asked her how long she had been doing this she said “ 80 years!”
- They spend a lot of time with their family & church.
- They have a weekly rest day, the sabbath.
These are just some of the habits that make them into the healthy people that they are with very low rates of cancer , heart disease, diabetes or dementia.
Sowing a good seed leads to reaping a great harvest in the autumn of life.
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