It’s hard to believe that another year has gone by so quickly. It seems that it was just the other day that I turned 70. As the years go by, time seems to go faster. It was a very busy year for me. I decided to get a new kitty after my beloved Cali died. My new cat, Ali, was just 9 weeks old when we brought him home. He was very active and had a way of getting into everything. I was overjoyed to have him but I had to muster lots of energy and stamina to care for my new “baby.
After I turned 70 last July, I felt the need to do something to mark this milestone. In late September, 2019, I decided to put together “Late Blooms,” the book named after this blog. As a Senior Citizen of many years, I decided to make it an inspirational collection for people like myself. Having written over 200 posts on different topics, a selection of posts, quotes, poetry, and photos had to be carefully chosen for this project.
As I worked on Late Blooms, a second project was started to mark this milestone and that was a children’s book called “Making New Friends.” You can read about both projects and view photos and videos at jeanjankisamaroo.com This website was the brainchild of my brother, Ronald Mitra Janki of Simply Spectacular Designs. I’m very thrilled with it and there is additional material he plans to put there.
Some of you have already seen the outcome of “Project 70” and others have see pictures of them. A project that I thought would take around 3 months (Late Blooms) took the better part of a year. This leads me to my first reflection on time. Expect things to take longer than you anticipated. Learn patience.
These projects were not completed alone. I was working with many people on them and I’m very grateful to each and everyone. However, many unforeseen situations and challenges came up and had to be dealt with as we went along. My second reflection is that whatever project/projects we may undertake, there’s always a steep learning curve.
The third reflection is to stay the course. The fourth reflection is that “you have to surround yourself with good people who understand your project and why it’s important to you. It’s their energy , support and understanding that will get you to the end.
Last, but not least, be grateful for how things turn out. We always want our work /projects to be perfect. I was happy to hold these books in my hands. When I found things that I had overlooked within the book or errors that others made, I was disappointed. I had to remind myself that we’re all human and that mistakes will be made. What I/they didn’t do this time can always be addressed the next time. We have all learned from this experience and can move on.
With the Coronavirus in the air since late last year (Wuhan) and for us in this part of the world this year, it’s been a trying time. We’ve all been learning more and more that “we are our brother’s keeper.” What I do or don’t do matters. For many months of my 70th year, I have been immersed in the language and news regarding this virus – as has the rest of the world. Keeping safe has been the top priority. I’m grateful that so far I’ve been safe and so have friends and family. Others have not been that fortunate and we remember them.
To reach my 71st Birthday is a privilege and joy. I never expected to live this long. Instead of bemoaning growing older, I’ll just say I’m lucky to be here in this time, space, and place. I’ve always liked Dr. Seuss and I think that his is a good quote to end this post:
Today you are you! That is truer than true! There is no one alive who is you-er than you! Dr. Seuss