You Say Its Your Birthday…

I recently celebrated a landmark birthday and I am now feeling “officially old.” Up until now, birthdays have never bothered me much, but this one stopped me cold. I can no longer deny to myself or others that I am “aging” and to say that I was shocked and depressed about the situation is a bit of an understatement!

Once I had a glass of wine and thought things over, however, I came to the only possible conclusion: There was of course, nothing I could do about it. You can’t beat Mother Nature, so there was no recourse but to put on my big girl panties and try to make the best of it.

Upon further contemplation I realized that I had many things to be thankful for and even though I now embody the very essence of the word “senior,” I still feel quite young. I also have a wonderful family, a wonderful husband and wonderful health (fingers crossed it continues).

I celebrated this momentous occasion with my family on a beautiful calm and sunny day which was very unusual for the time of year. We were able to sit outside on our balcony (as per Covid directives) and we enjoyed a lovely meal that I had no part in preparing. 🙂

So at the end of the day, I was a very happy camper. Life is good and I appreciate every moment and all that I have.

I am increasingly aware, however, that the years are racing by, so what is there to do but accept the inevitable and age gracefully. I don’t consider myself to be a particularly funny person, but I strongly believe in the endorphin releasing power of laughter, and the ability to make fun of oneself. We might as well spend our golden years having fun, laughing and sharing good times with others. A sentiment, I might add, that is at the very heart of The Sisterhood of the Travelling Shoes mission statement.

Humor is a Life Enhancing Medication

Perhaps that is an exaggeration, but I believe there is some truth to it. With that in mind, I would like to offer some pearls of wisdom that may or may not bring a smile to your face….. hopefully you might even laugh out loud 🙂 We are all aging every single minute of every single day so we might as well have a little fun.

Content Warning: The following is intended for mature audiences only. If any or all of these strike a chord with you, you are probably “old.”

So…….you know you’re probably “old” when:

• Happy Hour means its time for a nap.
• Friends with benefits means someone who can still drive, or better yet still drive at night.
• You see a really old person and realize its your best friend from high school.
• Scrolling through the drop down menu to find your birth year takes an eternity.
• “One for the road” means a bathroom visit before you leave the house.
• “In style” are the clothes that still fit you.
• The biggest lie you tell yourself is “I don’t need to write that down I’ll remember it.”
• Your secrets are safe with your friends. They can’t remember them either.
• Your grandchildren can’t understand why you print your boarding pass, wear a watch and have a newspaper delivered.
• Your train of thought often leaves the station without you.
• Getting lucky means finding a parking spot and better yet, remembering where that spot is.

It is tempting to end this post with some heartwarming, thoughtful platitudes. There are lots to choose from, but you can google them yourself. (That is if you can remember your user name and password.)

One final thought…. I really don’t want to reveal my age, but if you look closely in the birthday party video, there is a clue….That is if you have nothing better to do! But if that’s the case, then you are probably old.

Cheers! Life is good!

We plan to publish a new post every Monday, so stayed tuned for our next one entitled “Rest in Peace.”