The wait is over. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and his wife, Kate, are the proud parents of a future King. As they try to take in the wonder of being a first-time royal father and mother, it wouldn’t surprise me if they weren’t already considering health, — the longevity of their son.
While a wide variety of health modalities are available to William and Kate, as they are to you and your family, affirmation that health can be extended, regardless of age, is found in evidence that links thought to a life that approximates ageless living.
Many years ago, an article in The Lancet, one of the world’s leading general medical journals, described the experience of an English woman. The woman became insane and lost track of time after the man she loved abandoned her. Believing she still lived in the same hour of his departure, she never appeared to age.
After the article was published, Mary Baker Eddy, an American healer, author, and early researcher on health, thought, spirituality, and the powerful connection they have to each other, detailed the English woman’s experience.
Eddy wrote, “Having no consciousness of time, she literally grew no older. … When she was seventy-four … she had no care-lined face, no wrinkles nor gray hair. … Asked to guess her age, those unacquainted with her history conjectured that she must be under twenty.”
Eddy surmised: “The bodily results of her belief that she was young manifested the influence of such a belief. She could not age while believing herself young, for the mental state governed the physical. … The primary of that illustration makes it plain that decrepitude is not according to law.”
Now, many other voices in the discussion on health and aging are affirming that our thoughts and spirituality impact our longevity and overall daily physical and mental conditions.
Dr. Mimi Guarneri, author of The Heart Speaks: A Cardiologist Reveals the Secret Language of Healing, in an interview with Spirituality and Health was asked, “If you had to pick one alternative practice for this entire country, what would it be?”
Dr. Guarneri answered: “Meditation. Because I firmly believe when people have peace inside, when they go in and they feel connected to something larger than themselves. …They start to have healthier behaviors. I have really changed from looking at health from a physical outside-in to a spiritual inside-out.”
Gertie King, a long-time friend of mine, had confidence in a “spiritual inside-out” approach. It enabled her to remain healthy and active. She was 108 when I asked how she got to Texas. I thought she’d answer with, “Work relocation” or something regarding her family. However, she replied, “Covered wagon.” And she was serious.
I heard Gertie tell others that once when she suffered with a physical difficulty, she told herself, “That’s against the law!” She was immediately free of the difficulty.
Gertie was a Christian, a woman of great faith. She expressed dominion, and had a deep conviction that health was a spiritual phenomenon. She felt that there was a divine law behind it. To her, sickness was against the law. Therefore, she refused to act unlawful, and instead, took control of her thoughts and body through her maturing spiritual sense. She was convinced that spiritual authority could enable anyone to do so.
Perhaps, age could be thought of as the years when wisdom and dominion rule instead of a time when decline must occur. Queen Elizabeth II, is 87. She could tell her great-grandson something about longevity. Possibly, in a few years, William and Kate will encourage their young son to utilize spiritual power as he grows and matures.
Despite prevailing assumptions about life and age, my friend, Gertie, agreed with Mary Baker Eddy’s end analysis:
“Except for the error of measuring and limiting all that is good and beautiful, man would enjoy more than threescore years and ten and still maintain his vigor, freshness, and promise. Man, governed by [God], is always beautiful and grand. Each succeeding year unfolds wisdom, beauty, and holiness.”
As society pushes toward achieving consistent wellbeing, maybe, a more thoughtful and spiritual approach to life might just help people recognize their ability to exchange decline for dominion.
Long live the (future) King. But don’t forget to help yourself live longer too.
