He is there. You can’t miss it. Autumn. This season that makes it so mercilessly clear to us that summer is over and winter is just around the corner. That time of year when the already gray days get shorter and shorter, the temperatures drop, the leaves fall from the trees, the flowers wither, the birds migrate south. And you could list so many more negative things that characterize autumn. But autumn, like so many things in life, also has its two sides.
Autumn memories
Can you remember how you perceived autumn as a child? How you went for a walk in the woods with your parents on sunny autumn days, trudging through the leaves? How the autumn colored trees were made to glow by the October sun? How you collected acorns and chestnuts to make funny figures? How you enjoyed the long, cozy evenings at home when your parents read to you or you snuggled up with a blanket on the sofa to watch an exciting movie? How you could suddenly see much more of your surroundings from your nursery window because the big tree in front of it had lost its leaves?
Indeed, autumn also has its beautiful sides – not only for children. As an adult, too, you should often remind yourself of the many beauties of an autumn day. That brightens the mood. It motivates. You can’t stop the course of nature, you can’t influence the weather and you have to accept that it gets dark earlier and earlier in the evening. But you can do a lot to make autumn a really beautiful time for you – autumn is what you make of it.
The autumn of life
And that also applies to the so-called autumn of life. The autumn of life – or evening of life – is the term used to describe the period of life that inevitably ends at some point with death. And as a result, this period of life automatically takes on something negative, oppressive, final. Of course, here too, you can’t stop things, the biological clock is ticking, it’s normal to get older. Today the rest of your life begins. But the autumn of life also has two sides. You can decide which side you want to devote your energy and time to. Unlike nature, however, the autumn of life does not have a fixed start date, and certainly not a calendar-based end.
When does the autumn of life begin?
When we reach retirement age? With the first age-related ailments? With the first grandchildren? When a younger person offers you a seat on the streetcar? What is the saying? You are only as old as you feel. And there is some truth in that. And that brings us back to the two sides of autumn – the beautiful and the not so beautiful. When you’re just 70 years old, you can regularly sit in your family doctor’s waiting room, learn the pharmacy’s “Umschau” by heart, and neatly file the package inserts for all kinds of tablets. We are not talking about people who are seriously ill. We’re talking about those who think that after a certain age their complaints must inevitably increase, who listen to themselves, who discover something new every day that could cause them physical trouble. And therefore also stop certain activities. Simply because they think they are too old or too sick for many things. Those who can’t find any beautiful sides to the autumn of life.
And yet it has so many positive things to offer, the autumn of life. You suddenly have a lot more time. For hobbies, for grandchildren, for traveling, for the garden. All things you have been looking forward to and can now finally enjoy. How often have you said, after a long and arduous day at work, how much you’re looking forward to retirement? When everything has focused on a weekend that was far too short and you once again only managed to do half of what you set out to do. Of course, here and there health-related, age-related complaints arise. But you can forget about them when you’re busy with the good things in life. Or you treat them yourself, by swimming, cycling or walking. Because these are also things that you can do much more now thanks to the newfound time. As I said – autumn is what you make of it yourself.
Fill the autumn of life with beautiful memories
And then there are the beautiful memories that you have. Of the time when the children were small, grew up and became adults. Of the wonderful vacations, Christmas parties and birthdays. Memories that no one can take away from you. And that help you get through phases of life when you can’t do things the way you used to. How often have you been asked by your children or grandchildren about incidents from your life? You must have told some stories ten times. But they are always exciting and entertaining for your descendants. It has often been said: You have experienced so much, you should write a book. In fact, now that you have a lot of time, you should write a book. About your exciting life. With all the stories you’ve told over and over again. But which might be forgotten someday. A book of life would be a great idea.
Create a life book now!
Get access to hundreds of questions. We'll structure your answers, make sure you don't forget anything, and take care of printing and mailing. In a few weeks you will have a book about your life in your mailbox!
Writing a book? That’s only for real authors, with publishers, printers and all the trimmings. But it’s not. Because with the help of Meminto Stories you can write down your life story in a real book. A book that is printed at the end and receives a high-quality cover. The procedure is really simple. All you have to do is register with Meminto Stories. Then select the Book of Life section and enter a few details about yourself. And then everything goes by itself. Meminto Stories asks you questions, usually one question per week. You can answer them at your leisure, by e-mail or by phone. Meminto then turns the answers into a story – your life story. And all of a sudden, in the autumn of your life, you’ve become a book author. By the way, a book like this is also a great gift for your children and grandchildren. When they can read your life story in a real book. Try it out – you are not too old for it!
