In an upcoming book I’ve been working on for a while, there is a blog piece about aging well with the earth. That book brings together a collection of essays that I’ve written over the past 10 years, and my plan is for it to be available sometime this year.
The more “out there” my work becomes, the greater my interaction with people from all over the world, and even though I’m an extreme introvert, I love it. People share all kinds of things with me — meaningful things about their lives and the impact of my wildlife art and photography in it.
I feel so blessed to even be a part of someone else’s day.
One of the things that has come up again and again recently is the fact that I don’t attempt to hide my age, my wrinkles, or put a filter to try and enhance my appearance. I’ve had a lot of women thank me for that.
My dear friends, you are welcome.
But I don’t feel that I can actually take credit for it. I’m proud of the wrinkles. They demonstrate several things, which I’ll point out momentarily. Not so long ago, a new friend was driving me around Juneau, Alaska. After some silence, he said “Elie, you’re kind of a hippie.”
Oh how my soul smiled.
I know I definitely carry some of those characteristics. And yet, think of Sheldon Cooper of The Big Bang Theory, and I can promise you, I’ve got a lot of him in me too. So much so, that I’m sure it would annoy most of you. I’m pretty anal about order, precision, and attention to detail when it comes to my work. I don’t tolerate inefficiency well, and I don’t like people messing with my time — not respecting it. I’m also pretty insistent on thorough and proper communication when people deal with me, or ask me to deal with them. I am a literalist in speech, by nature. Someone’s word, and my own word, are vital for my respect for them and for my self-respect. And I can’t stand people noise. Especially loud people noise.
And yet, I’ve been a full-blown artist since childhood. And that does mean the package of flow that comes along with it. I consider myself so darn lucky to have that side to balance the other side. Without that hippie artist in me, I’d probably drive myself crazy. So somehow, with these ingredients, even with all the Sheldon in me, I’m really laid back. The caveat to that is if someone exhibits an entitlement to me or my time. Then the answer is just “No.” No anger. No drama. Just “No.” I feel such gratitude that these features balance me rather than have me tipping off to one extreme or the other.
I admit that I have noticed that a lot of people and organizations don’t understand the word “No” or someone protecting their time. That is their issue and not mine. Time is of the essence. The clock is ticking on my life. On all of our lives — to be frank.
But back to those wrinkles. They demonstrate that I already overcame a ton of odds that I wasn’t sure I would in my youth. I literally didn’t think I’d live to see 40. Those brow crease lines in my forehead show the Sheldon in me. I think a lot. I read a lot. I incessantly contemplate how to live, and I problem-solve.
A LOT.
Those laugh lines show how much I’ve been privileged with laughter. I’m so grateful for deep belly laughter and so many of the hysterically funny absurdities of life, the ability to acknowledge them, and just let them go.
Those crows feet around my eyes give a really good indication of how much time I’ve spent examining the landscape for wildlife. Squinting into light. Searching. Patiently waiting and watching. Hour after hour, sometimes for weeks, watching animals in the distance and trying to adjust my eyes to the light. That’s written around my eyes, and I don’t want to conceal the traces of those sacred times that are etched into me.
All of the marks are a map of my life, written across my face.
The Earth does that when we are fortunate enough to be here long enough. Not everyone has been given the gift of time. We should remember that. More than once, I almost wasn’t here. As many of you know, a few years back, a truck hit me when I was on a motorcycle. That journey through keeping limbs that I almost lost and coming up out of a wheelchair was life-changing.
There is a quote that I found when recovering from my accident, because when it comes to scars, I have a lot of big ones.
A scar does not form on the dying. A scar means I survived. — Chris Cleave
I think the same way about wrinkles. They mean I’m still here, and like each of us, I have a story. The face proves it.
This past summer, quite accidentally, a grizzly bear looked me in the eye at a range too close for my comfort, and she stopped my heart and called me to that awareness of mortality yet again. She wasn’t out to get me, and I wasn’t stalking her too close as a photographer. This was one of those accidental encounters out of the blue. I don’t want it again, but I’m grateful for the moment that my eyes met hers. And I’m thankful that she peacefully kept moving on.
The original “Aging Well With The Earth” blog piece was inspired because someone had asked me if I could choose any age to be, what I would choose. I chose the age I was at the time and gave an older range as well — much older than was common for them to hear, and in that blog piece, I explained my reasons.
Some things have remained the same for me and some have changed. The changes include how a few random aches and pains come and go, seemingly inexplicably. I’m still plant-based after 24 years. I still feel better physically and have more energy than I did as a 16 year old athlete. I still love animals and try to find ways to do work to help them.
I’ve noticed that the more natural foods I eat, the better I feel, even though I’m aging. Thus far, things are going well, though I realize there is no guarantee health will continue, no matter how hard I try. But as of now, although I do realize some limitations since the accident and with being mid-50s, my organs and joints seem to be doing pretty well. I can still maneuver into some pretty awkward positions for long periods of time while shooting images of wildlife, and I just love that. Thank you kale and spinach, cauliflower, broccoli, and green tea, to name a few.
While friends younger than me, and people directly related to me deal with all kinds of diseases and infirmities, I feel like Mother Nature is guiding me and allowing me to age with a hint of grace that I hope continues. She gives me clues and I try so hard to listen to my instincts and her guidance. I very much realize my mortality, and I’m trying hard to follow her lead. When people applaud me for taking a natural look, I also usually wish to point out that I attempt that with what I put in my body as well. I do my best to stay away from ultra-processed and packaged foods. Limited ingredients with very few of those undecipherable chemicals and a long process to my table. I try to grow as much of my own food as I can.
There is also the social aspect of aging that plays a role in our well-being. We are a social ape, and relationships are very important. That being said, it’s the quality rather than the quantity that positively impacts our health.
When you’re out there on social media like I am, sharing your heart and soul with masses of people, you are going to meet all kinds of folks. I am absolutely blessed with the best friends and acquaintances in the world — of that I am convinced. But also, I acknowledge, some of that comes from me. One must be willing to weed and tend the garden. You’ve got to give more, and be the change you want to see. Cliche as that has become — it’s true. You want a friend, then you have to be one. Do it first. Don’t wait for handouts. Because there are folks out there who aren’t kind. We all know that. You’ll bump into them for sure. How you deal with them will impact your own quality of life.
The more time we are given, the less we have to live. The closer we are to the finish line. My life is probably halfway over, but not even tomorrow is guaranteed. Here are a few pieces of advice to myself that continue to help me during whatever time I have remaining:
- Don’t sweat the unkind people. Focus on the masses of good people and the wonderful things they do for humans and animals. You can’t stop the trolls, but you can weed them out of your day, and in this case, be like a duck and let their negativity roll off your back.
- Know the value of your time and how you wish to spend it. No apologies or compromises. If someone wants your time — assess the exchange, how it serves you, others, and the common good. You don’t owe anyone, or any organization, a one-sided vampiric relationship.
- Know who you are, and if that is who you want to be. Don’t spend precious moments in self-loathing. If you want to make a change in yourself, study how to do it, and do it.
- Don’t complain. Investigate causes and potential solutions. Make plans to change things for the better when you can. Know what you can change. Accept a realistic pace for it. Do it, or let it go.
- Nurture yourself with quality downtime. We all have to put food on the table and shelter for ourselves, if we are fortunate enough to even have the opportunity for that. It’s a stressful world, one in which we are seeing increasingly amounts of emotional struggle in our species. We must identify how to tap into our unwind and do it well. That’s why I protect my personal time so vehemently.
If you are like me, at least mid-way along your life’s journey, I hope you will embrace the gift of life, and the beauty of age. I don’t envy youth. I do cherish them. They give me hope. They can be partners for change. But I don’t want to be them. I want to be me. And I hope you either are, or become the person you want to be, and that you age well with the Earth.
Thank you all again for being here and following along in my wildlife art and conservation journey. My next big trip will be to photograph black bears in the Great Smoky Mountains. After that, it’s back to my precious Alaska for another round with the coastal browns! I hope you’ll come along for the ride!
