Advice to people of 40 years for further Living

 
Advice to people of 40 years for further Living

I’m in my late thirties, not quite 40 yet, but my dad always had this way of slipping wisdom into the smallest conversations—advice that never felt like advice until it smacked me years later. When it came to ageing, he told me something I never really understood when I was younger: “You’re not losing time What, you’re gaining clarity.”

Now that I’m a little older, I think I get what he meant. Ageing isn’t some slow descent where you trade youth for aches and regrets. It’s this constant refining process, like shedding layers of what doesn’t matter anymore. All those insecurities you used to carry? They start to fall away. The things you thought were so important; chasing status, trying to impress people; they lose their shine. And what’s left is sharper, clearer, more real.

My dad also had this quiet confidence about ageing, something I hope to carry with me as I approach 40. He’d say, “Take care of your body, but don’t be afraid to wear it out doing things you love.” To him, life wasn’t about preserving yourself like some relic. It was about living fully; running, laughing, and loving, even if it left some scars behind. He wore his wrinkles like medals, proof of a life lived on his terms.

He also taught me this: ageing isn’t a countdown, it’s a privilege. Some people never get the chance to see 40, let alone 50 or beyond. So if you wake up one day and notice a grey hair or a creak in your knee, let it be a reminder that you’re still here. You’ve made it through things that might’ve broken someone else. You’re not “getting older,” you’re getting to keep going.

So, my advice? Don’t look at ageing as something to fight or fear. Look at it as a gift you get to unwrap every year. Be kind to yourself. Laugh more; at yourself, at the absurdity of life, at how none of us have it figured out no matter how old we get. And most importantly, don’t stop trying new things. My dad was always picking up new hobbies in his 50s, and I swear, he was more excited about life then than when he was 25.

Ageing is just another version of you waiting to be discovered. And if you do it right, you’ll find that version is wiser, freer, and maybe even a little bit happier.