Old
I’m aging. There are a few more gray hairs, but I keep telling myself that no one notices because my hair is a light color anyway. The gray simply blends in with the dirty blonde. It gives me that distinguished look. The hair is also receding a little. My son says it’s a lot, but it really is only a little (I think). Okay, I’m having more difficulty keeping my weight down, too. It doesn’t drop as easily as it used. I’ve had to start using a new hole in my belt to keep it from squeezing me too hard. Despite all of that, I think I look pretty good for half a century old. Recently, an acquaintance I hadn’t seen for several years commented to me, “You haven’t changed.” See there’s proof I’m holding my age well.
Evidently, everyone doesn’t agree with my acquaintance, however. Surely, she wasn’t just saying that to make me feel good. A couple of days ago while ordering at a fast food restaurant, the young man behind the cash register asked me the most horrific question–”Are you a senior citizen?” It was my first time. I suppose the first time is always the roughest. You know you’re aging when the fast food cashier asks you if you qualify for a senior citizen discount. You know you’re aging when old people your own age tell you you haven’t changed.
So I’ve decided to accept it–to admit it. I’m getting old. I even have an AARP card (this is true confession night). Old is not so bad actually. When I finally admit I’m getting old I don’t have to worry about my receding hairline anymore. I don’t have to worry if every hair on my head turns gray and falls out. I’m old. It’s suppose to do that. In church last Sunday, our senior adult choir sang. The choir loft was full of gray heads singing with vitality and enthusiasm. A senior adult man in front of me in the pews was practically dancing to the hymns. There is life in old age. Perhaps there is even more life in the aged than in the young. Senior adults have less to prove and are less encumbered with the expectations of youth. We can simply enjoy each moment and dance to the music without a care what other people think.
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