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Steve Gorman's avatar

Hope you are feeling connected in body and mind, on your retreat!

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

Thank you! This retreat will include yoga, so that will help. Doesn't start till 10/22 — lots of traveling before then!

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Kristi Hein's avatar

Ah, the witnessing of our elders' bodies declining and dysfunctioning. Preview of coming infirmities. I've mentioned before how an extended period of disability in my late 20s taught me to keenly savor ability and fitness. A gift I wouldn't necessarily care to gain in the same way, but it has served me. Now I find myself thinking "Pretty good for 73, soon to be 74!"

Also pondering much the same as you so well describe: "I'm a mind, I'm a body, what a wonder!"

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

Yes, I remember you saying that. Sounds so hard, but it seems like you got a good lesson out of it.

Maybe part of my feeling is about the wonder of it all. Nice way of framing it!

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Adam J. Blust's avatar

I didn’t think much about my body when I was younger. Then I lost a bunch of weight. And I had two serious brain events: a brain tumor and a stroke. And now my body feels pretty alien. Not the least of which because my head could kill me at any moment. That’s true of anyone. But now I think a lot about it. And I also have all the regular aging stuff: sleep, digestion, aches and pains.

Not that I want to transplant my mind into an android body. But this body does feel like it’s fighting me, rather than supporting me.

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

That all sounds so hard, Adam! I hope your body treats you better from now on. That's a lot to deal with. Sending you all the best wishes.

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AthensK's avatar

I hope your mom recovers quickly!

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

Thank you!!

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Charles Schleicher's avatar

I think I spent most of my life thinking of my body as a car that carried me (my head) around. As years went by and I had to do more physical labor on a regular basis, I came to think of my whole body as part of me. It is what it is. It gives me location and does a good job of it.

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

I think that's key, Charles, doing more physical things to ground ourselves in our bodies. Hope all is well with you!!

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Sandy Videgar's avatar

Hi Rosanna - per usual - feeling connected to you because your words resonate so completely. As an Aries, I do like to live in my head - contemplating and asking questions constantly. But - at 65 - my body won't let me forget it. I am currently on my heating pad, encouraging the Tylenol to my hip, even as I write this. I hope your trip is everything you hope it to be.

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Rosana Francescato's avatar

Thank you, Sandy!! I hope your recovery progresses and you feel much better soon! Our relationship to our body certainly can change as we age and encounter more issues with it. I still have that tendency to live in my head, but maybe doing more physical things would help.

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