Getting old!
I would never trade my
amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a
flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less
critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for
eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly
cement gecko that I didn't need,
but looks so avanti garde on my
patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world
too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with
aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play
on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to
those wonderful tunes of the 50's, 60's &70's, and if I, at the same
time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.
I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is
stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if
I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet
set.
They, too, will get old. I know I am
sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well
forgotten. And I eventually remember the important
things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been
broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one,
or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a
car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and
compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will
never know the joy of being imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my
hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into
deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died
before their hair could turn silver.
As you get older, it is easier to be
positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't
question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be
wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old. It
has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going
to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting
what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat
dessert every single day (if I feel like it).
uke:
