Age Advantage

Age is a number. Age is relative. At 57 years, I would be considered "old" by many young people. In this country, there is a shocking lack of respect for, or interest in, old people. (During the height of the recession, I actually had a person on LinkedIn suggest to me that I should "die off" and make my job available to someone younger!)

Age bias is based on ignorance and is usually easy to shrug off. The truth is that we have many advantages that have come from our life experience:

We are past any identity crisis we ever had.  We know who we are.
We don't care much what other people think, as long as we are doing what's right for us.
We are not impressed with status symbols. 
We are past worrying about looking silly.
We understand our physical limitations and are generally at peace with working within them.
We know the value of a good night's sleep and appreciate how well we feel upon awakening.
We have routines that give us comfort and keep our lives in balance.
We know who our friends are, and quietly avoid people that are bad for us.
We have the perspective to pick our battles.
We know when to ask for help.
We are more careful about what we eat and how it will affect how we look and feel.
We are realistic about our fading youth, but take care with our dress and beauty routines.
We have financial security and work within a budget.
We know the value of good health, and do what we need to do to preserve it.
We have a lot to share, and find pleasure in doing so.
We treasure our family and friends, and aren't shy about expressing our feelings.

This is a personal perspective. I know these things are not true for everyone in my age bracket, just as they are not NOT true for some young people. What I'm trying to say is that I don't feel "old". I am older, I am wiser, I am happier, and I am well and at peace with where I am in my life. I won't ask for anything more.

Our Fragility

As we age, I am finding that I have a heightened awareness of our fragility.  We didn’t think about this when we were younger.  Life was navigated casually, and we took our health for granted.  It was impossible to imagine that something really bad could happen to alter our existence.  So, we burned the candle at both ends, got behind the wheel under the influence, and worked so hard that we sometimes made ourselves sick with the effort.  We just knew that we could cheat Fate.

Now that we have passed the mark of 50 years on earth, I look at things a lot differently.  There are more years behind us than in front, and I appreciate life as a gift. We’ve experienced more, and we’ve felt the rancid breath of the grim reaper get a little too close for comfort on one or more occasions.  There’s a different perspective that comes with age.

You see, any of us is a moment away from debilitating misfortune.  I don’t live life dreading it, but I know it’s true.  It could be the illness that confines you to bed, the terrible car accident that severs a family, the numbness in an arm that signals a stroke, or a diagnosis of cancer.  These mini tragedies occur around us every day, and mark us all in one way or another.  At best, they bring us together to share our strength, fear, and hope.

We try to take care of ourselves by eating correctly, working out, getting enough sleep, and enhancing our nutrition with vitamins and supplements.  Wellness visits to the doctor and dentist are part of our routines.  Now we know that a reduction of stress in our lives and active social connections with friends are part of a healthy lifestyle.  There is so much we can do.

Embrace every day with gratitude, and take care of yourself and your loved ones.