I’m very sorry for these issues, and I will be correcting them very soon!!

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In the initial days of living in my new, wonderful apartment, I opened a box of books to unpack. On the top of the pile was a book I don’t even remember buying. It’s title…Making Miracles: An Exploration Into the Dynamics of Self-Healing (How 11 incurable patients battled illness – and won). If that wasn’t a ‘sign’, I don’t know what is!  I immediately found time to read this book!

In this day and age with millions of people out of work and millions without health insurance (like me), our initial reaction when faced with health issues is that our options are very limited…go into deep debt or get sicker! But yesterday morning it occurred to me that this is one of the “whys” of my path right now…to learn about different options and to share them with others like me or others who know and love someone like me. Our bodies are miraculous in and of themselves, and we seem to forget that reality as we go through the motions of everyday living. But this book is inspiring and enlightening!

One of the most well-known subjects in the book is Norman Cousins, who was the Executive Editor of the Saturday Review and an advocate for world peace, as well as the healing powers of our bodies. He cured himself from a terminal illness through massive doses of Vitamin C and laughter, literally restricting himself to a hotel room where he watched funny TV shows and movies and had a nurse read humorous stories to him. Years later he also recovered from congestive heart failure and a heart attack without surgery.

Here is a quote from the Norman Cousins’ interview with the author (Dr. Paul C. Roud) of the Making of Miracles:

The doctors would call my absolute confidence denial, but it can be beneficial to deny, to defy the verdict you think is attached to the diagnosis. If you can recognize that the diagnosis is a challenge, not a verdict, and that there are resources to work with, and not all of them lie outside yourself, you can liberate the body from the complicating factors caused by fear. It seems to me that this frees the healing system – whatever that is – to assert itself and also creates an environment in which medical treatment can do its best.

I doubt there are many of us in this day and age who aren’t aware of the terrible toll that depression and stress can have on our physical well-being. Unfortunately, our health insurance and national healthcare systems aren’t helping the sick feel confident, calm, and upbeat. But maybe if more of us become educated in the option that moves us away from dependence on strict, scientific medical treatments, we can help ourselves!

Again, from Norman Cousins:

Panic, fear, and depression inhibit the ability of the body’s own apothecary to function properly.

Helplessness is a product of our education; we seem to be convinced that serious illness always proceeds in a straight line unless interrupted by some outside agencies. It’s a kind of education that prepares us for weakness rather than strength. We’re not educated in the essential robustness of the human body. Consequently, victory seems to be very elusive.

Personally, I refuse to feel helpless, fearful or depressed! I refuse to let victory elude me!

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It seemed like the right time to get back to the book I’ve started, The Second Half of Life.  I have a few decades to work my way through the Eight Gates of Wisdom, and the first on my journey is the Silver Gate.  Each gate has identical parts that must be navigated:  the Task, the Challenge, the Gift, Reflections, and Practice.  It appears that maybe there is more to this second half of life than merely waiting for wrinkles to appear, body parts to sag, and memories to fade.

Allow me to quote a poem from the book that does a beautiful job of describing what awaits us as we maneuver through the gates of our lives.  The author is Eva Pierrakos, from The Pathwork of Self-Transformation:

Through the gateway of feeling your weakness lies your strength.

Through the gateway of feeling your pain lies your pleasure and joy.

Through the gateway of feeling your fear lies your security and safety.

Through the gateway of feeling your loneliness lies your capacity to have fulfillment, love, and companionship.

Through the gateway of feeling your hopelessness lies true and justified hope.

Through the gateway of accepting the lacks in your childhood lies your fulfillment now.

Bring on those next 50 year!!!  Happy Birthday to me!!!

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Now, through one of the newer “creations” of our time….blogging….I can also share my thoughts and observations with those unknown to me, kindred spirits nonetheless, as we forge ahead into the unknown of the next 50 years!

I’ve been doing a lot of reading and researching on the topic of longevity, subscribing to online newsletters, buying books, all intended to boost my chances of becoming a centenarian and more.  Currently, I also write articles for Examiner.com regarding longevity, which my blog readers may enjoy if they aren’t aware of them already.  I’ll provide the link to the site and my article.  Usually, when I tell my friends I want to live that long, the overwhelming response is that they don’t!  In reply I ask, “Why not”?  Mind you, my belief is that by the time I reach the ripe young age of 75, it will be remarkable what strides anti-aging research will have made. 

Please join in with me as I delve into what it’s like moving through the second half of the century that will be my life.

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• Valuable information on the latest research into anti-aging and life extension.
• Nutritional tips that will help you on your path to longevity.
• Healthy insights from numerous resources
• Shared wisdom to help with spiritual and emotional growth on that journey to the century mark
• Information Junkie Days—all sorts of interesting, fun, useful (and some not so useful) information/stuff!

Who is this Karen Garcia person, anyway??

About six years ago, I set a goal for myself of living to 105.  At that time, I didn’t actually change a whole lot of what I’d already been doing in my day-to-day life to insure this goal was met.  I wasn’t fanatical about the things I ate or the exercise I was getting.  I am just passionate about being around for a very long time!

I am a glutton for information on longevity.  So I thought it would be fun, informative, and (hopefully) motivating to blog about what I learn.

In January of this year (2010), however, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Fortunately, it was an early stage cancer; and fortunately, I had a good friend who gave me great advice:  “Take a deep breath!”  Because of extensive research I did, my decision has been to approach my recovery from cancer using alternative treatments.  What that means is no surgery, no radiation, no chemotherapy.  Instead, I have drastically changed my diet…no sugar, no (or very little) animal protein, only whole or sprouted grains, and lots of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds.

This little fork in the road has not changed my goal one bit!  I will still live to be 105, only now I’ll be able to inspire others who may otherwise have this kind of hiccup discourage them!

My desire in writing this blog, also, is to leave my children and grandchildren a remembrance of me that will be chronicled over, I hope, the next 50 years!  Maybe it will inspire them or just give them something to think about that will mean something because it came from wisdom I’ve gained by being around for more than a century!

Can I be disciplined enough to make changes along the way that can add an extra couple decades to my average life expectancy?  Getting a diagnosis of cancer certainly gave me a lot of motivation!  Follow my blog and find out!  In addition to the entertaining legacy for my family, my vision is that I will also make many new friends who are interested in “thriving” to a ripe old age and share in each others adventures!

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