What is midlife?
I’ve been wondering lately about the definition of midlife.
I know that the dictionary definition is, “the central part of one’s life generally from 45-55.” However, as I look at my Life’s a Daring Adventure site’s tagline of ‘midwife for midlife’ I question whether those ages are accurate. If so, at this moment, I need to live to be 124.
This past weekend I was able to share in a class reunion. The group of about 40 folks gathered at the Thunder Bay Restaurant to celebrate their 52nd class reunion. That meant each of their birthday cakes had 70 candles this year.
During the pre-dinner cocktail hour, I heard Kathy explain that she is really excited to be learning again. She’s studying opera. She’s up to the Baroque period. I heard another woman saying goodbye at the end of the evening, excited to be leaving the next day on a six-month camping trip. All around the room, folks weren’t doing a one-up chat for their fellow classmates; they were talking about what daring adventures they were having.
I told Kathy she was in midlife, she laughed. I don’t actually expect she’ll be living until 140, but I do think that she epitomizes what midlife is all about.
At the annual dinner for Wisconsin Women Entrepreneurs, I heard our new president, Barbara discuss the demographics of the organization. About 90% of the membership are over 35 years of age; 45% are over 55 years. I was amazed at that last statistic. Nearly half the women who define themselves as entrepreneurs are over 55.
They come to WWE to connect, learn and share.
These three words clarified my definition of midlife. Hint: It’s not an age, it’s an attitude.
Connection. Midlife is a time to connect. To rethink how we process our lives. We make connections with thoughts and ideas and people in new and different ways.
Learning. Midlife is a time to question what we know, think and do. Questions drive learning. Whether it’s opera, camping or business when we question, we seek learning. The old phrase, “If we always do what we always did, we always get what we always got” is turned on its head. We need to learn to grow. Information forms us and creates a new us every day.
Sharing. Midlife is about sharing. What is it that we know? What is it that we are? Sharing becomes a piece of our legacy as folks go to reunions or meetings. Folks begin to write books, paint pictures and blog so that they can share the knowledge they’ve aquired.
Midlife for each of us twirls and swirls from those ages of 45-death. Questions are constantly redefined, such as: Who am I, what relationships and connections do I have and how do I share? In my “real” midlife years of 45 to 55 those questions dealt with topics such as divorce, raising children alone, going back to school, working and teaching. Now they are far different: What is it I still have to share? How do I do that? They revolve around moving out of the “always did-always get” mode and into new connections, learning and sharing.
Midlife and my midwifing take hold for all the women I meet who are considering these three prongs of midlife, not only their age.
How do you define midlife?
Recent Comments