Well, I have a very easy birthday to remember - 4/4/44 - which means I reached age 80 this past Thursday. I've taken a few minutes to reflect back on the first eighty years. Here are some random observations: (1) As the saying goes, "death comes every day to someone, someday to everyone." I checked my USAFA class website - we graduated 613 guys, 130 have passed on. That's 21%. Early on deaths were due to combat losses and aircraft accidents, with some health causes (heart attacks, cancer) scattered in. Now we're getting into age-related causes as we get older. Makes me wonder why one passes on and another doesn't. (2) Maintaining your health is an ongoing need. Being active is important. I can no longer do the activities I enjoyed as a younger man - jogging, weight training, squash - and I've learned to switch to low-impact activities. I have a Bowflex for lighter resistance training and an elliptical for cardiac health (much easier on the knees than running). And I'm still able to play golf a couple times a week - although 250-yard drives are now memories. (3) Keeping your mind active is also critical. I play Duplicate bridge on a regular basis - bridge really requires you to think - and remember cards as they are played. I also do the crossword and the Sudoko from the Dallas Morning News every day. (4) The grandiose dreams I had at age 25 got replaced by reality along the way. I wonder - looking back at some points where I had to make a choice - what would have happened if I had taken the other alternative? Guess I'll never know - but I've learned to accept the life I've lived so far. (5) The biggest blessings in life come from people, not things. I have a wonderful wife (of 55 years and counting), three sons, two daughters-in-law, and three grandchildren - those are the real blessings. Raising three sons came with a lot of challenges, and being Dad required teaching them a lot of life lessons (things they could never learn in a schoolbook). And I'm still learning - being Dad to an adult son presents a role you have to grow into. As for the "things" I've accumulated along the way - cars, furniture, power tools, golf clubs, and so on - when I'm gone, I don't get to take them with me. They're mine to use and enjoy for a while. (6) I'm a Christian, and I'm still trying to learn to rely on God more every day - not an easy thing to do. But faith in God's direction is a very comforting thing. He is perfect - and I'm a very long way from perfect. I'm trying to learn to enjoy each day the He gives me - with the challenges as well as the joys. I'm looking forward to having another birthday next April - age 81, if God is gracious to give me that blessing. As the saying goes - having birthdays must be a very healthy thing, since people who have more birthdays tend to live longer!
Nice reflection HHD. One thing I have noticed with aging is that the list of things I truly care about now has gotten very short. It simplifies life a lot to get clarity about what matters to you and what doesn’t. The years sure do zip by though, don’t they?
HHD, Happy Birthday albeit belated. Great post. I quit having birthdays (for fear I couldn't count that high), but rather now celebrate the anniversary of my 25th birthday. (Resisting the urge to change to 50th birthday)
Wow, great post HHD. Just a bit behind you but often feel as though I’m beyond ever since my unexpected heart issues. As one ages and sees so many acquaintances pass, reflection becomes very commonplace, making one’s “questioning choices” made in life more poignant. I’m sure what I wrote doesn’t convey what I meant but nonetheless, I truly enjoyed your post.
I hear you, nashhorn - and I get your meaning. Reflecting back across the years of one's life enables one to identify what's really important - and the rest of it becomes the "small stuff" we're not supposed to sweat.
Side note - there's an old joke that goes like this: You can tell the age of a male by watching what he does with the daily newspaper - young boys turn first to the comics, young men turn to the Sports, middle-aged men turn to Business, and old men turn to the Obituaries. When I look at the Star-Telegram online, I must admit the first thing I look for is the obituaries - and I'm delighted to see that I'm not in that column!
HHD, Every morning I turn on the laptop and read the obituaries in the Houston Chronicle, Beaumont Surprise, Austin Spaceman, DMN, & Star Telegram, first to make sure I'm not in there, and seondly to see who I know. My son says I am a "professional funeral goer".
Sabre, it's an unfortunate fact that at our age, we're seeing our contemporaries reach the end of life - and sooner or later, we will, too. The good strategy is to thank God for each day and try to live it fully.
HHD, Long ago I adopted a philosophy that God may not let me visit here or do whatever I'm doing at the time, so I should enjoy whatever it is as much as possible.
My dad will be 82 in May. I'm only 45 but I feel like I'm going on 75. Aging is a peculiar thing. I appreciate life more the older I get.
I can relate. Seems like I hit that point at 40 - I realized that I was then into the second half of my life.
