It’s funny how life changes.

When I was a young boy, I remember riding my bike on Kings Highway in Brooklyn and hearing a couple of “old ladies” greeting each other. “Hello, Sadie! So how you feeling?”  Of course, she replied, “When you got your health, you got everything.” As I peddled off, I thought to myself, “What a stupid statement! A new hot rod car makes more sense.”

Today it doesn’t sound so stupid, and I hear my self repeating it often. Now in my 70s, I’ll take my health over that hot rod any day. Many things I thought mattered so much then, matter so little now. Sadie was spot on, as they say. Life is kind of like that—what I think I know turns out to be what I didn’t know, or what I haven’t learned yet. What was so important once is so insignificant now.

Over time, I’ve learned that paying attention, being comfortable with not having all the answers, opening my mind to possibilities, and being humble are key to feeling connected in my own mind and heart. Learning to slow down and listen, refusing to judge, and not put up road blocks in life are tools I wish I had earlier.

Life is showing me how important it is for me to stay in the moment. The only part of life and living I really have is this moment, and no other. The past has passed, no one has visited the future that I know of, so right here, right now is where I need to be.

And that suits me just fine. Sadie would be proud.

In peace, love and laughter,

Joe J. Dunne