You want more from life? Find it, whatever it is or how old you are........

Old.

Old, he thinks to himself

as he stares out through the bay window.

Where was I when I became old, how did it happen,

and how did I not notice it happening?

 

Not that I could have prevented time from passing, he thinks,

time is no respecter of human beings, time does not negotiate,

...... time marches on relentlessly.

 

Words spoken by his father nudges his memory: "Son, value every moment

of your life, for they are all precious."

How quick he had been then to dismiss his father's words,

only to realise now, how true they were.

 

Old, he had thought, was something that happened to others,

but as he looks down on his weather bitten and well-worn hands,

it is clear to him, that old is now happening to him.

 

Time is insidious, like a thief in the night,

he thinks as he watches leaves from the trees,

silently fall in the autumn breeze.

 

(Citizen X)

 

Once upon a time, being old was celebrated as an achievement and the possessing of good genes. Today? Not so much.....  Media is full of products for sale that will (so they say) slow down the ageing process, hide wrinkles, tighten skin, promote hair growth, fix failing eyes and ears, lift, tuck, smooth, etc. etc. ad nauseam. Problem is however, that from the minute we are born, we begin the ageing process.

Living, we have no choice in the matter; living means ageing.

Many of us when we were children and teenagers couldn't wait to grow older so that we could enjoy the privileges, freedoms, and rights, that we envisaged came along with being "old enough". Aging, at this stage was a good thing, but perhaps for many of us, the day we turned 30 (40, 50, 60), our battle with staving off getting old began. Some view ageing as process of decline, others view ageing people as a burden on society, and others view it as a personal affront. I would like to suggest another option: ageing is a privilege for those of us who are fortunate enough to do so, regardless of what our actual age is. Once we have life, in my view, it is up to us how we want to live it. Neither joy, nor beauty, nor happiness, nor mystery, nor discovery, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, nor insight, nor love, nor friendship, nor compassion are bound by age.

You want more from life? Find it, whatever it is or how old you are.

 

"Since our society equates happiness with youth, we often assume that sorrow, quiet desperation, and hopelessness go hand in hand with getting older. They don't. Emotional pain or numbness are symptoms of living the wrong life, not a long life." (Martha Beck)