I turned 50 in March. My best friend turned 50 in January. We grew up together and were introduced to each other while in diapers. Several years ago, when I turned 45....gee that would be 5 years ago, he gift wrapped a magnifying glass ( 3 inches in diameter). So, this year I got him a collapsable cane. Mailed it to him.
He and his wife laughed for hours at the gesture. So, then, he forgot my birthday. (go figure)
We refuse to go through mid-life crisis.... still mentally, 17 yrs old. I told him even after 3 brain surgeries, I'll probably out-live everyone I know. And if I don't, I've had more fun than everyone else I've known.
I wake up in a new world every day. And I still recite the prayer I use to say in high school:
Now I lay me down to rest
I pray, the Lord, I pass this test.
If I should die before I wake
That's one last test I'll have to take
I told you I was in a perpectual state of dormant mental awareness.
My father has been the best example for aging that I have ever seen. When he was in his thirties he was a beer drinking cheese eating overweight sedentary man.
He started dieting and running marathons in his forties all the way into his seventies. He was a teacher in a prison......then he designed lasers for helicopters in the military...he retired and went on to be on the team that invented/developed fiber optics....he retired from THAT job and went to work for a company that was instrumental in designing computer chips....finally in his seventies he went back to school to bcome a tax accountant so that he could volunteer to help older people at some center do their taxes....each and every one of these jobs should have been prestigious and lucrative for him to retire comfortably.....but he always told me that *about the time I have learned a job...it is time to find a new one* He always loved the challenge of learning a new thing.....he says that is what keeps him young.
At 70 he found the absolute love of his life and got remarried down in the fla keys....he and his wife travel extensively ...yardsale...disney...sea world...whatever strikes their fancy....According to him...the very best part of his life began for him unexpectedly in his 70s when he fully expected it to end....his wife had passed away suddenly.....he was alone and retired , kids grown... who knew that the best was yet to come?
At 40 I began indulging in my passions and dreams set aside all of these years....I have my horses, i raise and train them, I participate in community theatre, I began karate with my kids....at 45 I am one promotion shy of my black belt....
My dream is to maybe open a karate school with an after school program for kids as an alternative to day care or being alone in the afternoon when their folks are at work.
It doesn`t matter what direction that I go in....what IS important to be learning and challenged...otherwise, life gets pretty stale.
I think middle age is different and Im not convinced it may be for the better.
today I went to the pharmacys to get my meds.. I had not gone to this pharmacy in about 20 years , and they didnt process my insurance so the kid said "go see YOur case worker".
Now I have not the money or desire to pay for this stuff and im suppose to go in for sugery next week .
I said IM not going to pay for this stuff , I am certain your put the information in wrong.
and I was not nice about it this was after waiting for over an hour for the meds. but i didnt yell or get upset.
So the pharmacy guy said to me "NO need for all this screaming" i wasnt screaming I was just telling them they were wrong and to figure it out I asked the kid to get the manager.. it was not the kids problem he was just doing what he was told.
the pharmacy manager agrued with me and told me well they couldnt do iit I said then give me my prescriptions back.. He says you have cash I said NO you have to figure out how to do your job .
I told him call another local store and ask them what kind of insurance it was.. He didnt believe me it was not medicaid .. it was not but he was convinced and wouldnt buge..
IN the end I said dump the drugs and give me my prescription back and I will not pay you cash. Now he is inconvienicied and it will cost HIM money... hmm the tone changed.
He called the other pharmacy and found out HE was WRONG and I was right.
filled it. and i went to the store manager and complained about him.
Trust me I never would have done this any of this if I was in my twenties.
middle has given me more courage to say my piece regardless what what people has to think.
alot more I think knowing I aint sexy has given me the courage to be real or something.
In an ealier time I would have just agreed with him (knowing he was wrong ) and walked away without the drugs or the prescription.
today I guess I threw a fit and got my needs met..
crap I do not if it is better it is just the way things have changed .
Thanks Washington and Wacky for the books you recommended. I got "Finding Your Own North Star" and have read the first 100 pages. Great book!!!!! It's going to take a few attempts at the exercises and I probably will have to read it a couple of times. Also found other titles by Martha Beck that I need to read.
I have the other book "Necessary Losses" ordered and will start that next.
This phase of my life is officially on its way to becoming an adventure. Thank you for your help.
Getting older isn't bad. I am 48. I started out the 40's by giving birth to my last child, out of 4.
I lost my first at when I was 26. Having children later on in life is challenging and refreshing.
Helps to keep you young, to see things new thru their eyes. Granted I am not running beside them. No!
I think the hardest thing was gaining weight later in life and not being able to get it off like I would like.
But time is my friend and I will plug away....I am needed and pulled in a lot of directions but am learning to find time to refresh and renew myself. Praise God, He is there for me cause I could not do this on my own.
He is my strength. He hears my cries. He is a lamp unto my feet.
I have so much more to give...and with that I get very thankful.
To see what the Lord has in store,,,,,will be awesome.
Recommended Posts
YIdon'tgotochurch
I turned 50 in March. My best friend turned 50 in January. We grew up together and were introduced to each other while in diapers. Several years ago, when I turned 45....gee that would be 5 years ago, he gift wrapped a magnifying glass ( 3 inches in diameter). So, this year I got him a collapsable cane. Mailed it to him.
He and his wife laughed for hours at the gesture. So, then, he forgot my birthday. (go figure)
We refuse to go through mid-life crisis.... still mentally, 17 yrs old. I told him even after 3 brain surgeries, I'll probably out-live everyone I know. And if I don't, I've had more fun than everyone else I've known.
I wake up in a new world every day. And I still recite the prayer I use to say in high school:
Now I lay me down to rest
I pray, the Lord, I pass this test.
If I should die before I wake
That's one last test I'll have to take
I told you I was in a perpectual state of dormant mental awareness.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
rascal
My father has been the best example for aging that I have ever seen. When he was in his thirties he was a beer drinking cheese eating overweight sedentary man.
He started dieting and running marathons in his forties all the way into his seventies. He was a teacher in a prison......then he designed lasers for helicopters in the military...he retired and went on to be on the team that invented/developed fiber optics....he retired from THAT job and went to work for a company that was instrumental in designing computer chips....finally in his seventies he went back to school to bcome a tax accountant so that he could volunteer to help older people at some center do their taxes....each and every one of these jobs should have been prestigious and lucrative for him to retire comfortably.....but he always told me that *about the time I have learned a job...it is time to find a new one* He always loved the challenge of learning a new thing.....he says that is what keeps him young.
At 70 he found the absolute love of his life and got remarried down in the fla keys....he and his wife travel extensively ...yardsale...disney...sea world...whatever strikes their fancy....According to him...the very best part of his life began for him unexpectedly in his 70s when he fully expected it to end....his wife had passed away suddenly.....he was alone and retired , kids grown... who knew that the best was yet to come?
At 40 I began indulging in my passions and dreams set aside all of these years....I have my horses, i raise and train them, I participate in community theatre, I began karate with my kids....at 45 I am one promotion shy of my black belt....
My dream is to maybe open a karate school with an after school program for kids as an alternative to day care or being alone in the afternoon when their folks are at work.
It doesn`t matter what direction that I go in....what IS important to be learning and challenged...otherwise, life gets pretty stale.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Wacky Funster
Congrats on the almost black belt rascal!!!!!
I remember when karate was just a thought!!!!! and baby, look at you now!!!!!!
Proud Wacky :)
Link to comment
Share on other sites
rascal
Awww thanks Wacky :) Not to shabby for a middle aged, at one time seriously out of shape, asthmatic old gal...eh?
I have to vote for midlife adventure....the very best times of my life began after 40...seriously ..I would NEVER go back.
I love being able to embark in any new adventure I take a notion to.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
pond
I think middle age is different and Im not convinced it may be for the better.
today I went to the pharmacys to get my meds.. I had not gone to this pharmacy in about 20 years , and they didnt process my insurance so the kid said "go see YOur case worker".
Now I have not the money or desire to pay for this stuff and im suppose to go in for sugery next week .
I said IM not going to pay for this stuff , I am certain your put the information in wrong.
and I was not nice about it this was after waiting for over an hour for the meds. but i didnt yell or get upset.
So the pharmacy guy said to me "NO need for all this screaming" i wasnt screaming I was just telling them they were wrong and to figure it out I asked the kid to get the manager.. it was not the kids problem he was just doing what he was told.
the pharmacy manager agrued with me and told me well they couldnt do iit I said then give me my prescriptions back.. He says you have cash I said NO you have to figure out how to do your job .
I told him call another local store and ask them what kind of insurance it was.. He didnt believe me it was not medicaid .. it was not but he was convinced and wouldnt buge..
IN the end I said dump the drugs and give me my prescription back and I will not pay you cash. Now he is inconvienicied and it will cost HIM money... hmm the tone changed.
He called the other pharmacy and found out HE was WRONG and I was right.
filled it. and i went to the store manager and complained about him.
Trust me I never would have done this any of this if I was in my twenties.
middle has given me more courage to say my piece regardless what what people has to think.
alot more I think knowing I aint sexy has given me the courage to be real or something.
In an ealier time I would have just agreed with him (knowing he was wrong ) and walked away without the drugs or the prescription.
today I guess I threw a fit and got my needs met..
crap I do not if it is better it is just the way things have changed .
Link to comment
Share on other sites
watersedge
in 2 months i turn "old" and am not afraid
born in the the fifties.....that's 19fifties for the youth here
six decades of what is called life has me still wanting the youth of youth
and with each passing day i still get older, my body keeps reminding me that i:
can't run as fast
move at the crack of dawn
my eating habits have to change
sex .............we'll wait on that one
i drool from time to time
skid marks happen more than i want
naps have become a daily routine
beer still tastes good...just not in the same quantities as youth provided
what i'm saying is that it's okay to grow older because:
i don't need to run
get up cause the sun does
quit eatin bacon
sex..............we'll get back to that one
worry about the puddles
bleach does wonders
studying the inner eyelids is great therapy
beer still tastes good
gettin back to sex..........what's that?????
aging is a rite to be earned and a joy to be in
life will teach all of what we need to carry on
did i mention cold beer?
Link to comment
Share on other sites
excathedra
midlife crisis:
me and my dear child
menopause and puberty
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Scout Finch02
Thanks Washington and Wacky for the books you recommended. I got "Finding Your Own North Star" and have read the first 100 pages. Great book!!!!! It's going to take a few attempts at the exercises and I probably will have to read it a couple of times. Also found other titles by Martha Beck that I need to read.
I have the other book "Necessary Losses" ordered and will start that next.
This phase of my life is officially on its way to becoming an adventure. Thank you for your help.
Edited by Scout Finch02Link to comment
Share on other sites
Ca_dreaming
Getting older isn't bad. I am 48. I started out the 40's by giving birth to my last child, out of 4.
I lost my first at when I was 26. Having children later on in life is challenging and refreshing.
Helps to keep you young, to see things new thru their eyes. Granted I am not running beside them. No!
I think the hardest thing was gaining weight later in life and not being able to get it off like I would like.
But time is my friend and I will plug away....I am needed and pulled in a lot of directions but am learning to find time to refresh and renew myself. Praise God, He is there for me cause I could not do this on my own.
He is my strength. He hears my cries. He is a lamp unto my feet.
I have so much more to give...and with that I get very thankful.
To see what the Lord has in store,,,,,will be awesome.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
watersedge
as i said before i am a product of the fifties
six decades of this "carp" called life - spelling intentional
aw hell, the older i get the better the s....x gets :blink:
whenever that event may occur
did i really say cold berr? spelling un-intentional
cheers
just ask dr feelgood
Edited by watersedgeLink to comment
Share on other sites
Bramble
I hear you, exie. I have three in puberty. I'm 49.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.