June is traditionally the month for weddings and it is also now celebrated as Gay Pride month. Love is in the air all around. This is a juicy time of making whoopy.

But while June is the jolly season for Brides and Grooms, Brides and Brides and Grooms and Grooms, it is important to remember that the most primary and important love is that of Self Love. All relationships are built on the respect, esteem and affection that we have for our self.

How I Transformed My Life After 50 – Part 2

By Diane Gilman

5 Easy Ways to Shift Your Thinking from Aging to Ageless

Make the List: Five years ago I made a list of everything about myself I didn’t like and wanted to change. On the same page I made a list of all things feminine I wanted to embrace or achieve. No different from a general attacking the enemy on a battlefield, I turned around each area of my life. Overnight my life went from Bucket List to Boundless!

Play in Today: In my twenties, designing for Jimi Hendrix and other rockers from San Francisco to London, “living in the moment” was easy. Throughout the years, evolving into “The Jean Queen” on HSN, I’m confronted with staying relevant in fashion and television — two industries driven by youth and beauty. My secret? Every morning I look myself in the mirror and say, “Today is the youngest you will ever be. What are you going to do with it?” Don’t just stay in today… make it a point to play in today!

Break Through the Age Barrier: Recently I was asked, “When are you going to stop making jeans for old ladies?” I had to laugh. “Honey,” I replied, “there is nothing old about making ladies feel sexy at any age.” Challenge yourself to break through the preconceived ideas handed down to us as women. As if you’re in your fifth, sixth, or seventh decade, you must be “an old lady.” Forget it! Just like Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier, my mission is to break through the age barrier by redefining what’s sexy for Baby Boomer women now.

Picture This: Every moment of my life I imagine myself as a camera, with my heart as the aperture. I capture it all: the sights, smells, words, feelings. When you feel shut down, ask yourself, “Can I open my heart to new possibilities?” I’m living proof that when you do, more opportunities, productivity, fun and love are just waiting to come through. Remember, even a little light creates a big picture.

Think Tapestry, Not Atrophy: My work enables me to travel the world, crossing paths with women of all lifestyles, ethnicities and ages. It’s human nature to compare how we feel on the inside with how others appear on the outside. When that happens, think tapestry, not atrophy. Every woman’s journey is a vibrant thread weaving its own unique path through the fabric of life. Turn a walk down the grocery aisle into a celebration of yourself. Make the ordinary extraordinary!

If you had told me going from aging to ageless was this easy, I never would have believed you. So along with everything else, I learned the hard way: on my own. Now that these five simple shifts in my thinking have created the five most successful, romantic and surprising years of my life, I want to share them with all my Baby Boomer sisters. It’s never too late to make life better and make your dreams come true. So turn it around! Plant the seed that you, too, can age agelessly. Tend to the garden of your life by taking simple actions. And watch yourself blossom bigger than ever into the best Baby Bloomer you can be!

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Donna Henes is the author of The Queen of My Self: Stepping into Sovereignty in Midlife. She is the Midlife Midwife™ offering counseling and upbeat, practical and ceremonial guidance for individual women and groups who want to enjoy the fruits of an enriching, influential, purposeful, passionate, and powerful maturity.

Consult the MIDLIFE MIDWIFE™: http://www.donnahenes.net/queen/consult.shtml

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The Queen welcomes questions concerning all issues of interest to women in their mature years. Send your inquiries to thequeenofmyself@aol.com.