There was a time I thought of maturity as being overly serious and self important, as the grown ups around me seemed to be. Naturally, I wanted nothing to do with maturity in this sense. Peter Pan was my hero and role model. Now, as I am all grown up in body and years, it’s finally time to do a re-frame on this concept of maturity, as follows:
- it means to cease blaming any others and/or circumstances for my life and take full responsibility for what has happened and is now happening. The stories about all events have been all mine all along.
- it means claiming the freedom to allow, feel and fully express ALL feelings, from sadness, and anger to giddy laughter and every other feeling that arises naturally in my experience (and they can now come and go within minutes!)
- it means the freedom to move and shake my body in full surrender and wild abandon and in full view of others, from time to time
- it means being able and willing to speak the truth, even when it’s messy or uncomfortable, and accept any consequences. (As Mark Twain said, telling the truth means I don’t have to remember anything, which is helpful in my case!)
- it means having the “spine” and courage to fully face the entirety of my life, what’s working, whats not working so well, to both love and accept it all AND at the same time, be willing to courageously take the next small step or big leap in my own evolution and higher functioning.
- it means committing to live with an open heart even when ego and my own history and the culture at large seem to want to shut it down.
- it means being mindful when I slip into any sort of drama, external or internal, where I am playing any victim, villain or hero roles
- it means doing my practice of Presence to live and love as much as possible, “above the line” – in the drama free zone (is much more fun and passionate here!)
This new take on maturity has a strong sense of lightness and play and deep joy, the very qualities I used to think becoming “mature” would leave behind. In this new take on maturity, I also can more easily connect to my core passions and act on them more fearlessly, not caring so much what others may think of me. This freedom to express what is true for me leads me to more passionate living in all areas of my life.
(Picture is of me singing an outdoor gig at the IV Food Coop, something I would have let fear stop me from doing not too long ago!)
So now, halfway through my 60th year on this planet, with this re-frame on the concept, I hereby commit to moving into the next level of maturity in my life. Are you with me?
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When not writing for Passionate Living or sharing his heart songs, Wayne is an online marketing strategist at Kaizen Marketing.