By Harold Boulette
“If the base of a felled tree that has grown old in earth and rock ‘will bud at the scent of water … like a young plant’ (Job 14:9), it is also possible for us to be awakened by the power of the Holy Spirit and to flower with the incorruptibility that is ours by nature, bearing fruit like a young plant, even though we have fallen into sin. Sometimes our soul grows despondent at the huge swarm of its sins and temptations, and says, ‘Our hope is gone and we are lost’ (Ezek. 37:11.LXX). Yet God, who does not despair of our salvation, says to us: ‘you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord’ (Ezek. 37:6). To the soul that doubts how it can ever give birth to Christ through great acts of holiness, these words are said: ‘The Holy Spirit shall come upon you’ (Luke 1:35).” ~The Philokalia
I once cut down a tree in the back yard of the house I was living in in Virginia. There were just too many trees there and that one didn’t seem to be getting much sunlight. But after I cut it down, it quickly started to regrow sending out new shoots from the top of the stump. I decided if it was that determined to grow, I should leave it do so.
During a drought, trees in some places may dry up and die and fall over. Other may be knocked over by hurricanes and tornadoes or burned down in forest fires. Yet when the conditions are better, some of them will grow again. In desert areas, some flowers and plants have adapted to the environment to the extent that they can become dormant for several years if necessary, then grow green, blossom, and produce seeds in a matter of a few days, or even hours when a rare raid occurs.
Some people become spiritual at a fairly young age, and that is just fine, we wish there were more. Others, however, do not see the value of it until they are in their fifties, sixties, or even older. They now understand that death is approaching them and the materialistic life they have led has not prepared them for an afterlife, unless one thinks becoming fertilizer is an afterlife. They now realize that developing their immortal spiritual faculties is far more important than collecting cars, homes, and fountain pens. Many of them think that they have waited too long and cannot change their “sinful” (materialistic) ways. Quite simply, they are wrong. While “the sooner, the better” is true in this case, it is also true that it is never too late to start caring for your soul.
Modern scientific studies have shown that our bodies and minds can live in good health much longer than many used to believe possible, but we have to work at it. Fifty or sixty years ago, a man in his sixties or seventies would be physically weak (either very skinny, or fat) with small muscles. He (or she) would have difficulty walking, lifting, and just forget about running. And they would likely be getting forgetful and grumpy. Their ability to think would be seriously impaired. Things are different now.
Much of those problems once believed to be inevitable with aging are now known to be preventable and others can be delayed for decades. We now know that some of these problems were not direct results of getting old, but the result of decades of abusing out bodies with junk food, tobacco products, drugs, and booze. And the idea that once we reached a certain age, we need not learn anything new resulted in the deterioration of the brain/mind. New programs that have elderly people solving puzzles and reading has been shown to significantly slow down or even prevent some forms of dementia. At age sixty-six, I now go to a fitness center three times a week, eat a diet of mostly fresh fruits and vegetables and lean meat (no red meat!) and fish—organic when I can get it. And I am much healthier now than I was two years ago.
But what we are really concerned with on this blog and in the Cosolargy Community is our spiritual health. Just as you can largely recover from neglect of the physical body and brain at almost any age, so can you recover from a lack of spiritual growth. Your soul does not have to be awakened when you are twelve, or twenty, or even thirty. You can start of the path of spiritual enlightenment when you are forty, fifty, even seventy. No matter how materialistic you have been in the past, you can start to change now, today. You can start the process of awakening the spiritual faculties at any age. I will also add that it doesn’t matter what color you are, where you were born, whether you are gay or straight, or what language you speak. Everyone can develop their spiritual side (with the help of God) with just a few exceptions.
There are people who cannot develop their soul because, very bluntly, they don’t have one. Some people think that is impossible, but they are confusing soul and spirit. In any case, if a person commits a heinous crime such as a mass murder, torture, or genocide this is so grievous to the soul that it may abandon the body and return to Heaven alone.
But we will assume you are not one of those people, so you can do it no matter how old you are. But don’t wait until you are on your death bed and given only a few hours to live to try. The process of awakening and enlightening the soul takes years so, while it is available at any age, it can’t be done in a matter of hours. And like the old saying goes, don’t wait until the ship of opportunity has left the port to decide you want to go on the journey.
A shorter version of this post previously appeared on my blog, Solar Wind.