Were You Clueless Before Your 50th Birthday? A Nora Ephron Quote on Wisdom
The women in our Sixty and Me community have lived six fabulous decades. We have experienced challenges in each chapter of our lives and we have lived through some of the most dramatic times in the history of the world. Most of us have achieved great things as mothers, workers, friends, wives and members of society.
We have so much to be proud of. We have soared high on happy times… and occasionally crashed into despair during sad times. Each time, we picked ourselves up and moved ahead. We are survivors!
The cool thing about boomer women, in my opinion, is that we have a wonderful combination of intelligence, resilience and vulnerability. We know that we have done great things, but, we also realize that we can do better next time. We have a sense of humility and realize that we always have more to learn.
This reminds me of a quote by Nora Ephron, who said, “In fact, looking back, it seems to me that I was clueless until I was about fifty years old.”
I think that many women over 50 feel the same – that they are finally discovering the confidence and strength of character that they felt was missing in earlier phases of their lives.
Now is the time to reflect on the cast of characters that we have let into our lives. Now is the time to remember the places we have lived and the choices we have made. Only by embracing (and accepting!) the past, can we build a happy and successful future. There should be no regrets – only the wisdom that comes from learning from our past.
In our lives, we have been scattering brilliantly colored dots across a canvas that started a blank slate. Each dot is a different color door. Each pattern is a unique key. Now, with the wisdom of experience, we are slowly connecting the dots and opening the doors one at a time. Some doors we leave shut – and that is ok. We will open them when we are ready.
What one experience in your life taught you the most? Why? Do you agree that wisdom comes with age? Or, do you feel that you have always had the perspective that you do now? Why or why not? Please join the conversation and “like” and share this article to keep the discussion going.
