“75 Years Forward: Finding Meaning Through the Miles”
Today, I turn 75.
Three-quarters of a century sounds like a long time — and it is. But strangely, it doesn’t feel like the end of something. It feels like a summit, a scenic overlook with a panoramic view of all the terrain I've walked — and a fresh trailhead calling me forward.
I’ve lived through seasons of love and joy so deep they stole my breath. I’ve also known grief that left me hollowed out and motionless, like a tree stripped bare in winter, unsure it would ever feel the sun again.
But here's the gift of time: the longer you live, the more you see that life is not defined by what happens to you, but by what you choose to make of it.
The Gift of the Long Road
With age comes clarity. Not the smug kind — the earned kind. The “I’ve-walked-through-fire-and-I-still-believe-in-sunrises” kind.
I've learned that hardship is not a detour from meaning — it is the path to meaning. Pain is not the opposite of purpose. It’s the refining fire that shapes it.
Loss does not steal everything from you. If you’re willing, it can reveal what can never be lost — your spirit, your integrity, your resolve.
Hope Is Always Possible
Even when you’ve lost the love of your life.
Even when your body has been cut, stented, scanned, and diagnosed.
Even when your days grow quieter and the mirror tells you truths you didn’t ask for.
Even then, hope remains.
It may not shout. It might whisper. But it’s there — steady, patient, waiting for you to listen.
The Meaning in the Miles
I no longer measure success by speed or accolades. I measure it in the eyes of my granddaughters. In the quiet satisfaction of finishing a podcast episode that might encourage someone. In the joy of using my voice — literally and figuratively — to lift others out of their own silence.
I’ve become a steward of stories, a coach for the lost, a lighthouse for anyone navigating rough seas. That’s not retirement. That’s legacy.
Living Forward at 75
So here’s what I’ve come to believe after 75 years:
You are never too old to dream something new.
You are never too broken to begin again.
You are never too far gone to matter.
And you are never, ever alone.
There is life ahead — meaningful, joyful, purpose-soaked life — even if you’ve walked through hell to get here.
My journey is proof. I didn't just survive the worst days. I grew through them. I resolved to live forward, not in spite of the pain, but because I learned from it.
So if today you’re struggling, let this old coach remind you of something powerful:
You’re still here.
You still matter.
There is still more for you to do, give, and become.
Because the real power of a lifetime is not how long you live —
…it’s how deeply you choose to.
And if I can do it at 75, so can you.
Here’s to the miles that made us — and the meaning we’ve yet to create.
Live Forward. Always.
— John Morrow, 75 and counting
