Thursday, February 19, 2009

Birthdays

As birthdays go I think I'm ready to call it a draw. "Don't ask don't tell". I go through the motions of celebrating my birthday but honestly I would rather not acknowledge the growing old part. I have joked with friends and family that it is time to start counting backwards. I remember in my younger years looking forward to birthdays and celebrating but now it is more something to endure.Yes,with age comes wisdom but you can't really do much about it other than to look or act wise.
The aches and pains are not things I bargained for. I don't recall my parents complaining but then again maybe I just wasn't listening. I recall thinking they were old but now at the same age I am declaring to myself "I'm not that old!" Fifty is the new forty and forty is the new thirty. Don't believe it for a minute. When you begin to grow older you no longer stay up all night "partying" with friends and a 10:oo bedtime seems rational. After a long day I'm ready to rest and retire early, "tomorrow is another day" and pace yourself. When you reach a certain age you start to loose your youthful glow and sadly things begin to sag with the inevitable gravity. Don't get me wrong , I accept all of this but that doesn't mean I have to like it.
I work with some people who have parents my age and we often joke about it and I will say "I have shoes older than you". They were born after John Kennedy was president so for them that constitutes history. So I guess to them I represent history.When out in public I will sometimes look over at other individuals who look about the same age and inside I'm despairing about how old they look. We start to move a bit slower and youth passes us as if we are in the way.
At some point it is acceptance to stop fighting the aging process. We can't reverse the aging process so why not embrace it if possible.I do not quite agree that people should have" work" done as a way of stalling the inevitable. I think that is more for the Hollywood types not our everyday people.
I'm not ready for the grave yet but I have come to realize that even middle age is past its bloom.
So for now I will try to keep my appearances up as much as I am able but have stopped dying my hair.I'm okay with having to wear bifocals to see up close.When I gaze in the mirror I am sometimes shocked to see this older friend looking back at me with a reassuring smile that everything will be okay. So you're not 19 anymore, get over it.

3 comments:

underOvr (aka The U) said...

Wow!

Someone has gone in a reflective mood on me today. I won't insult you with cliches for the over 50 crowd imparted by those under 50.

You're a woman of dignity, you don't sweat the small stuff.

OK, I'll shut up before you fling something at me. "Happy Birthday gaf85"

underOvr

Madame DeFarge said...

Happy birthday (she says very quietly). I rather enjoy some aspects of being older, but there's times when I'd like to repeat little bits of my life again. If only to remember how much fun they were.

You go girl!

gaf85 said...

U, Maybe it is different for men. Women probably possess a bit more vanity. After re-reading my post I realized that I may have sounded philosophical but definitely facing reality. I guess accepting the aging process is part of the aging process.
Let me know how you feel when you encounter your next birthday.

Madame,Yes it is fun to look back at earlier escapades when we were young and foolish. I often wonder what it would be like if I knew then what I know now!
Ditto the "go girl".