“Keep true to the dreams of thy youth. When look into the mirror nowadays, I witness my body making decisions without my consent. My eyes have decided to rest inside deep pockets, my waist has found the comfort of extra padding and my tired head has thrown off what it considered too much hair to continue its journey. My brain has resisted this mutiny for years, but now it has become only a casual observer set adrift on the sea of time. How I long to drink deeply from the fountain of youth!” (Frank Schiller)

This leads me to ask:

Where is the best place to find the fountain of youth?

A. Graduate School

B. Inside an old, wise sage

C. Within yourself

D. Answers A & B, but not C

If you answered:

A. Just a walk into the hallowed halls of any graduate school and your hair will instantly turn gray (if you don't end up pulling it out first).

B. Although this is a good answer, keep searching. You don’t always need someone else to help you feel young.

C. Correct. Dr. Wayne Dyer, well-known author and beloved “father of motivation” writes in his book, “The Sky's the Limit,” “Mythology has always had it that there is somewhere on earth a magic fountain, spring or pool whose waters will restore your youth, keep you young forever. Common sense, however, has it that 'you are as young as you think,' and that the 80-year-old grandmother who has cultivated and knows how to enjoy her child-like qualities can essentially be much younger, more vital and more alive than the 25-year-old humorlessly battling his way through law school toward the top of his class, on his way through possible nervous breakdowns and ulcers to a partnership in a major firm in 10 or 15 years, and perhaps to a profound hatred of life. The real meaning of the fountain-of-youth myths my be to point out the superstitious absurdity of searching for your lost youth in anything external to yourself. It may be to remind you of your common sense, which says that you have a boundless fountain-of-youth within you, which you can tap any time, all the time, by simply letting yourself be a child again.

Dr. Dyer maps the way to the fountain of youth.

All you have to do is follow these simple steps-

Laugh- We all instinctively know that the more laughter we have in our lives, the younger we feel.

Dream again- Children love to dream, to fantasize, make up stories and use their wild imaginations. Your ability to dream still resides within you...use it or lose it!

Be a little crazy- Remember the “crazy moments” from your youth? More have been waiting on you to let go and get a bit wild.

Be Spontaneous- The willingness to try anything on the spur of the moment is the hallmark of youth.

Shamelessly make mistakes- As a young child, you were not intimidated by the fear of failure. You had to learn this fear.

Embrace the world as it is- Many of our wrinkles and most of our gray hair comes from trying to force others into what we think they should be.

Trust again- Return to the simple trust of a child and watch your “aching back” disappear.

D. If you are like me, you have always hated answers like this. So, as far as I am concerned, this answer is now—and will forever be—absolutely incorrect.

You don't have to resign yourself to remaining a helpless castaway on the sea of time. Drink long and deep from all that is still new, fresh and childlike within you.