HOW DO U LIKE GETTING OLD?

I have a few friends that are for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be…IN BODY, SPIRIT, HEART & MIND. Even though they sometime despair over what the body becomes - the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, the sagging rear, the grey hairs found on genitals, the sagging scrotum and the vagina that leans on one side. Though taken aback by that old person that lives in the mirror, they don't agonize over those things for long.

They would never trade amazing friends, wonderful life and the loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. Age has brought kindness and less self criticism…They’ve become their own friend, most definitely don’t chide themselves for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly gadget that they didn't need, but looks so avant garde on my kitchen counter. They think that they are entitled to overeat, to be messy, to be extravagant. Guess they’ve seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

They will dance to those wonderful tunes of the 70s & 80s and at the same time; wish to weep over a lost love…THEY WILL! They will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if they so choose, despite the pitying glances from the bikini set. They, too, will get old. One thing I’ve noticed is that they are very forgetful at times…But then again, some of life is just as well forgotten…and eventually the important things will be remembered.

Sure, over the years they’ve had their hearts broken. How can it not break when a love one is lost, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what gave them strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect. I know they feel blessed to have lived long enough to have their hair turn gray, and their youthful laugh be forever etched into deep grooves on their faces. 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. You don’t question yourself anymore; the right to be wrong has been well earned. YES A LOT OF THEM ARE SET IN THEIR WAYS & LACK PATIENCE ACCORDING TO OUR ESTIMATIONS, BUT THAT’S HOW IT GOES…So, to answer my question, I look forward to getting old. I know that it will set me free. I know I will 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.