posted 04-12-2005 09:12 AM         

Old age, I decided, is a gift. I am now, probably for the first time in
my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I
sometime despair over my body-- the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, skin spots
and bumps, the sagging butt,etc.

And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror,
but I don't agonize over those things for long. It's God's plan for us.

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
more kind 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 avant garde on my patio. I am entitled to overeat, 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 until 4 AM, and sleep until noon?
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60's, and
if I at the same time wish to weep over a lost love, I will.

I will walk the beach in a swimsuit 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 bikini set. Oh yes.. they, too, will get old.

I know I am often forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as
well forgotten -- and I eventually remember most of 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 a
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 turn 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.

I can say "no," and mean it. I can say "yes," and mean it. 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.

posted 04-12-2005 09:37 AM         

It's nice to slow down 'n' smell the scenery...and not always be in such a hurry to ... well, just be in any hurry! When Echo brings me one of her toys, I'll always stop whatever I'm doing & take time to play tug-a-war with her awhile! She's so appreciative--yes--like a child! So, anyway, good answers Geno Tex. But isn't it odd seeing that 17-year-old boy trapped inside your aging carcas everytime you pass a mirror? Ask me how I know!!