Down the Rabbit Hole – And About Time Too

Alice was seven and a half years old when she fell down the rabbit hole and followed a white rabbit.

I was in my 50s when I decided to follow a vague, persistent feeling that there was something just around the corner – something more interesting, something that was mine – if I would just stop being so sensible about everything and go and look for it.

It turns out, that feeling was right – and I wasn’t too old!

The problem with being sensible

Most of us women became extraordinarily sensible from our 20s. We made responsible decisions. We thought things through. We weighed up the pros and cons. We said things like “that’s not very practical” and “I don’t have time for that” and “maybe next year.”

Next year became next year, and the next year became the next. Then suddenly, it’s been three decades and you haven’t done the thing – whatever that thing was. Maybe it was: The art class, The solo trip, The language, The business or The dancing. Even the wildly impractical hobby that had absolutely no career benefits whatsoever.

“Sensible” can be a thief. It can steal things quietly, politely and with excellent justification.

I’m done with sensible. Well – at least, I’m done with letting it run the whole show.

What curiosity actually looks like in your 60s

Here’s what I want to clear up: curiosity at sixty-something does not look like skydiving. It does not require a gap year, a life coach, or a dramatic social media announcement. Nor does it look like quitting everything and moving to Bali or completely isolating yourself.

It looks something like this:

It looks like, watching a programme, video or documentary about something you know nothing about and thinking – I want to know more about that. Then actually following it up, instead of forgetting about it by morning.

It looks like taking a scenic walk in an area that you have never been to before, trying a new recipe, trying a different route home, visiting a section of the bookshop you’ve never ventured into.

It looks like signing up for the beginner’s class, an online course, a local workshop – and not minding one bit that you’re a beginner or a little bit older. Because why would you mind? Everyone has to start somewhere. Even Alice had no idea what she was doing when she followed that rabbit down the rabbit hole.

It looks like buying an unusual ingredient and Googling what to do with it. It looks like asking the question you’ve always been too embarrassed to ask. It looks like starting the thing, the project, the garden, the blog, the collection – not because you’ll be brilliant at it, but because you’re curious about what happens if you try.

The thing about the rabbit hole

In the story, Alice doesn’t know where the hole leads. The point is that – she sees something interesting, she follows it, and the world turns out to be much stranger and more marvellous than anyone had told her.

That’s a good metaphor for this season of life.

We’ve spent years knowing exactly where things lead. The routine, the responsibilities, the expected path. And that was fine. That was necessary. But now – now there’s a little more space. A little more time. A little more permission.

What if you followed the interesting thing – just to see where it goes?

Not because it’s practical. Not because it makes sense. Not because you can justify it on a spreadsheet. But because something in you lit up when you saw it. That spark is worth following.

You’re not too old for rabbit holes. If anything, you’re precisely the right age.

You’ve earned the right to be curious without apology. To explore without needing to explain yourself. To say “yes” to what sparks joy and “no” to the things that quietly dim it.

Where do you want to go?

I’m not going to tell you what to be curious about – that’s for you to discover. But I will ask you this:

What’s something you’ve thought about trying, learning, visiting, making, or exploring – and then talked yourself out of?

What did “Sensible” tell you, that made you file away that thing in a drawer marked “not for me” or maybe “later”?

What would you do if you gave yourself permission to be – just for once – completely and gloriously impractical?

That’s your rabbit hole. And it’s been waiting for you.

You’ve been sensible for long enough.

So, go on then! – Follow the white rabbit.

And I have a feeling, you might just enjoy what you find.

With warmth and considerable curiosity,

Grace 🌿