Ode to Old Age

You might be
wondering why I’m reflecting on old age today. I’m an adult yes (though I don’t
feel like it at times), but I’m not even old in the slightest! I grew up
as the baby (youngest of two) in my family and more or less have been attracted
to people older than me when it comes to making friends. I was reflecting on
old age and how much of a privilege it really is to grow old this weekend due
to a friend losing her mother in a long, hard fought battle with cancer. Death,
at any age, really makes you stop and think about life.

Here are some of my thoughts on old age and why I look forward to it:

I see the effects and signs of
aging as a privilege. Not everyone in life will be able to reach old age. Your
body should be seen as a temple and how you take care of it determines whether
or not you will reach old age. Well, most of the time. You have to factor in
freak accidents, diagnosis and things like that. You know, the things that are
beyond our control.

I’ve shared about this a little bit before on here but I lost a dear HS friend
in a tragic car accident 4 years ago. She was 19 but was just 3 short days away
from her 20th birthday. When I learned of her passing, my mind went through our
past conversations in almost chronological order. One of the last things we had
talked about was relationships (friendships, current crushes and past crushes
in HS). She had never dated anyone but I knew of someone who might have been
interested in her around the time she passed away. I mourned the fact that she
would never get to experience romantic love. Next came traveling as we had gone
on a mission trip to Mexico a couple years prior. Before long, my mind drifted
towards our future dreams and plans: growing up, getting married, having kids,
getting old… She won’t experience any of those things. It’s depressing to
think about yes, but I am comforted by the fact that with the years she did
have she lived them to the fullest. That’s all we can do, right?

Overall, I see wrinkles, age spots and gray hair as things to be proud of.
Laugh lines too! When you get all of those things, it shows that you’ve made it
to one of the most coveted stages in life: old age. I don’t want to get there
just yet but I have always dreamed of being older. I’m the youngest in my family
and for awhile I was the one of the youngest cousins. My friends
have almost always been older. I’m turning 25 at the end of this year, though,
and it’s freaking me out a tiny bit. To be honest, though, I welcome more birthdays.
There are far too many good people out there who die too young. Live your life
for them and when old age comes -and it will – embrace it and enjoy it! 🙂