Inspiration from Ari Cohen, of the blog Advanced Style

(For full article: http://www.npr.org/2013/04/01/174767233/-a-lovely-feeling-celebrating-older-women-with-fabulous-style)

"I didn't set out to be a photographer or a writer," he [Ari Cohen] says. "I just wanted to do something that I felt inspired by and start sharing it with people."

Simple, right? Maybe we don't have to start out with detailed five-year plans or even any clear idea of what we want to do...maybe we just need to start (for now, at least).

And one more thing - "Ilona Royce Smithkin, 93, is one of Cohen's most famous subjects...[art that she has made over a decades-long career] never brought her fame. The Advanced Style blog has. Now, she gets modeling jobs. She's on billboards. People recognize her on the streets of New York.
 
""It's a lovely feeling," she says, "like you are part of the world and the world is part of you.""

I'm pretty amazed by the fact that she's 93 and this whole new phase of her life- the modeling and recognition for her style - is happening now. Sometimes it feels like things aren't happening, or they're never going to happen. Dreams are completely out of reach (except perhaps in sleep). Only, the unexpected, the unpredictable...well, they do happen. You can live out your dreams.

To doing something that both inspires us and others. And of course, living out your dreams.

Desiderata - Max Ehrmann

Desiderata

Max Ehrmann

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be critical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. 



Wise words. What strikes me most is the emphasis on finding peace - in silence, with God, your soul. Your self. Maybe sometimes all you can ask is to be at peace with yourself. Change starts from within, right?

Such a beautiful poem, and so practical, too. 

To finding peace, speaking your truth, and remembering that "You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here...With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world."