As my husband’s birthday was last month, I find myself reflecting on age and how it manifests differently in people. It's fascinating how some people appear "old" when they are actually quite young, while others, like my husband, easily look 20 years younger than they are.
In graduate school, which I attended later in life, I met a 21-year-old who looked middle-aged. Recently, I encountered someone younger than me who looked 75. The years have not been kind to him, but beyond that, he's not a pleasant person to be around.
Betty Friedan once said, “Aging is not ‘lost youth’ but a new stage of opportunity and strength.” My older sister used to say I looked middle-aged at 5, perhaps referring to more than just my early crow’s feet. As a child, I worried about things beyond my years.
I don’t wish to be younger. My teens and twenties were filled with uncertainty and insecurity. I don't romanticize the past. John Lennon wisely advised, “Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears.” I smile more now and have more friends than I did in my younger years.
Though I haven’t aged as gracefully as my husband, I take inspiration from Cindy McDonald’s words: “Aging is not an option, not for anyone. It is how gracefully we handle the process and how lucky we are, as the process handles us.” I’ve been extremely lucky thus far.
As I continue to age, I aim to do so with grace. Eleanor Roosevelt beautifully stated, “Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.” I aspire to be a work of art.
Comments