Fear of aging
QUESTION: Masters, I have a sadness in my heart that feels like a depression when it comes to aging. I even recall crying about it as a child. It has gotten worse recently after the deaths of my grandparents and my father. Maybe because I have also struggled with a reoccurring health issue, although not terminal, it has affected me greatly and is a reminder of the disease that took my father’s life. Lately I’ve needed frequent reassurance that I still have friends and family around me and that things are going to be alright. I try to find the positives and tell myself that getting older isn’t so bad, but I just can’t shake this feeling. Why do I feel this heavy sadness, impending fear and loneliness about growing old? ~Angie, Canada
ANSWER: You have forgotten who you are – you are an eternal soul who has chosen to experience a human life for a brief period of time. This body you see in the mirror is only the covering you took on for this play in which you currently have a role. You chose to experience fear of termination or cessation of existence. One of the points you wished to learn was that you never die.
Your thoughts, fears, and need for reassurance come from the beliefs by which you have chosen to live this life. You are existing in negative thoughts and ideals. You see only the “bad” and disastrous implications of everything in your life because you see everything as being out of your control, determined by some physical force, and final.
You do not have any confidence in yourself, nor do you love yourself. You do not need others to reassure you if you recognize who you are and what abilities you have. You were broken off from Source, and just as Source is magnificent, all-powerful, and all-knowing, so are you.
Love of self comes from accepting that you have these powers and congratulating yourself on having the stamina and courage to come into this existence and face the tests you are undertaking. See yourself as an explorer who will understand that the next step is rejoining the rest of the souls back at Home where you will see everyone who has returned before you.
Aging is not just a step toward death for the body but is also the accumulation of more understanding and wisdom, both of which allow you to appreciate yourself. Connect with the spirits of your passed relatives to permit them to allay your fears.