The Joy of Getting Old

Shared by:  Terence Lee
 

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, and my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly.  As I have aged, I have become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself.  I have become my own friend.  I do not 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 a treat, 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 or play on the computer until 4am and sleep until noon?  I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60’s & 70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I know I am sometimes forgetful.  But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten.  And I eventually remember 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 somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car?  But broken hearts are what give us the strength, 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 turning 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.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive.  You care less about what other people think.  I do not question myself anymore.  I have even earned the right to be wrong.

I like being old because it has set me free.  I like the person I have become.  I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be.
 

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