The Best State of Middle Age: Cultivating the Ability to Delight in Oneself

As we live on, we come to understand that the best state after middle age is to disappear quietly, to be half-hidden and half-reclusive. Apart from making a living and daily life, we don’t need much socializing and bustle. What we need is peace and solitude, to be undisturbed by the outside world, to enjoy life, to maintain a quietly alert and contented state of mind.

As we reach middle age, we gradually find ourselves no longer adapting to the hustle and bustle, no longer enjoying endless banquets. We no longer want to put on a show, feign enthusiasm and joy, and engage in superficial conversations. Middle-aged people have weathered half a lifetime of storms; who doesn’t carry a bellyful of grievances and a heart full of endurance? But when we open our eyes, we find that those around us rely on us, yet we don’t know who we can rely on.

As we reach middle age, we have long passed the age of affectation and caprice. Looking back, we see friends drifting away, circles shrinking. Many things are beyond our reach, and many emotions can only be digested by ourselves. The weariness of middle age is the easiest age to become greasy, but also the easiest age to understand life. If the first half of our lives was about experiencing life in its bustling and vibrant form, passionately pursuing it, then the second half should be about returning to our own world, treating ourselves well, and redeeming ourselves. Observing the world in the first half, delighting in oneself in the second.

As we reach middle age, it’s time to please ourselves. The best days are no longer about amazement or glamour, but about being able to be ourselves. The best state of life is no longer about chasing outwardly, but about gradually detaching ourselves from the material world. Downgrade our material life, upgrade our spiritual life. When our desires diminish and life becomes simpler, we’ll find that life becomes happier because of its simplicity. Don’t waste precious time on things and people we can’t control. Apart from making a living and daily life, we really don’t need much socializing and bustle.

What middle-aged people need is peace and ease, to release past grievances and resentments, and to look lightly upon all troubles and worries. In undisturbed moments, enjoy our own lives, stay alert, and delight in ourselves. Ultimately, life is about making ourselves happy, everything else is just a means to that end. So when we are young, we exchange our abilities and talents for wealth; after middle age, we should focus more on nurturing our spiritual life.

As we reach a certain age, we need to learn to simplify our lives. Filter out the unnecessary impurities in our hearts and discard the unnecessary burdens of life. Only then can we move forward lightly and gracefully on the path of life. The most precious thing in life is not achieving great success, but being able to accept yourself no matter what. Not losing oneself in the bustle, not feeling lonely in solitude, not creating chaos in others’ worlds, nor wallowing in self-pity in our own.

In the later years of life, we don’t need a large circle; a clean one will suffice, and we don’t need many friends; sincere ones will do. We no longer demand ourselves to conform to anything, nor do we burden ourselves with excessive desires and constraints. We return to the simple joy of being human. Earn our own money, delight in ourselves, live according to our hearts, and find contentment. Perhaps, this is the best look for a middle-aged person.