While I’m sure it is possible to sail through midlife without any particular thought as to where you have come from and where you are headed, for most of us the most reviewing and reconfiguring are an essential part of midlife. I see this process as a journey, and as with most journeys, there is an element of research and planning needed to get the most out of it, some fears and anticipation while waiting to set out, the adventure of the journey and then the reflection on what you’ve seen and leaned.

For many the journey through midlife has movement both forwards and backwards, as we explore our past and decide what to carry forward into the future. We know others have taken this path before us, and are happier for having done so, but there are also times when we doubt the wisdom of ever having set out ourselves. For those of us at midlife, it helps to have concepts to hang our new ideas on.

One idea that might help is to think of life as a labyrinth we will benefit from traveling. For centuries people have walked labyrinths as a representation their spiritual or inner journey through life. Unlike a maze which makes you think about how to get out, a labyrinth only has one path, taking you into the center and then back out again, much like the passage through midlife. The only choices the walker needs to make is whether to enter or stay outside.
People have used labyrinths to help themselves work through a particularly difficult part life for many years, finding them to be a place to meditate or pray while their feet simply follow the line.

These pages offers an eclectic selection of ideas about the midlife journey – whether it is metaphorical or physical – and the decisions we may need to make along the way.