What 70 years on the planet has taught me

On December 29th I reach the milestone birthday of turning 70 and I’m surprisingly happy and excited about it.

I am feeling mostly healthy and optimistic, and the biggest benefit is that I feel so FREE!

Free to do what I want.

Say what I want.

Be WHO I want to BE.

And this state of being was not predictable.

As a child I was anxious, depressed, and shy.

I was a terrible student. Often lonely.

And I went through a very long awkward “ugly duckling stage” as a pre-teen.

There was a time when I seriously considered suicide.

Fortunately, at the age of 28, I decided to study “happy” people to see if I could turn my life around.

I observed. I read books. I did research. I went to therapy.

Attended self-help workshops, joined CODA meetings for a while, and I took very big risks including moving from Miami to Los Angeles in 1984 with very little money or connections or even a plan.

I found the courage to attend Landmark Forum, The Hoffman Process, and study A Course in Miracles and it all worked.

I reinvented myself into a happy, outgoing successful person.

To this day I still consider myself a student of life and a student of love.

Was it easy?

No, and there were times when I suffered through dark nights of the soul and yet I discovered that I am resilient and creative and willing to do the hard work to have a life I love.

What I know for sure is that for me, it’s essential to consistently keep studying with the experts as a way to stay informed and motivated.

I am blessed to be surrounded by friends who’ve made transformation their life’s work and I often include them here in my newsletter so that you too can reap the benefits of their knowledge.

Today I see my life as a sacred, ongoing ritual of gratitude and practice to keep myself grounded, healthy and willing to love and be loved.

Manifesting my soulmate Brian at age 44 has certainly been the best and the biggest lesson of my life when it comes to love. To share your life with your best friend, lover, soft place to land is a spiritual path not to be missed.

As I step into seventy, the beginning of what Wayne Dyer called late afternoon in life, I’m looking forward to more fun, ease, grace, and pleasure as well as new adventures both internally and externally.

Thank you for being a part of my community.

Arielle