"On the Aging Process"

It happened while I was on my hands and knees weeding Bruce's blueberries prior to fertilizing them.  I turned a corner and ran smack-dab into a wall.  It wasn't a literal corner or a literal wall, but it might as well have been.  It was that tangible, that palpable.  In fact, it was so real, I didn't know if I would ever find my way past it.  I was not a happy camper as it was the first day of real sun in forever, a day without rain, and the last thing I wanted to face was the fact that I am aging.  Reality aside, what a grim thing to be thinking about! 


Several days ago, my daughter sent me a picture of the two of us, one I had not seen before.  I asked her when it was taken and who the old lady was with her. The two just didn't match--What I saw with my eyes and how I feel.  There is a two to three decades disparity between my chronological age and what I feel within me.   I don't feel old, but "pictures don't lie," and boy, this one didn't do that!


I began thinking today about the fact that aging is a process as are many things related to the body.  There is the birthing process, the healing process, the dying process.  The very word itself is indicative of something that takes place over a period of time.  It is not something that happens overnight, but it does happen. 


I also began thinking about how our lives often go full circle, ending up where we started.  We all began this life being taken care of.  Someone saw to it that we were fed, clothed, that our basic needs were provided for.  We never had to be concerned over bills, budgets, the weather.  This doesn't sound all that different from the assisted care life provided for an older person.  We eagerly awaited the magic 16-year-old birthday when we could get our driver's license.  Having the keys to our own car was a rite of passage.  At the other end of the spectrum,  the license isn't renewed, the keys are taken away, and driving privileges revoked due to age.   It is a circle of limitations and boundaries placed on a person beginning in childhood, ending as an elderly person.
 


This morning I heard myself say, "Let  me live my life with grace and bring honor to you, God."  The aging process is part of life.  I hope this is something I am able to do and to do it well.  This process is not personal, it is universal.  I guess I was just expecting it to circumvent me.  It hasn't.


I made it past the wall today, and this much I know:  Having a sense of humor and a positive attitude at any point in life is priceless.  Having a daughter who says, "You're gorgeous," when you know the two of you were looking at the same picture is even more so.  What is that saying about not being able to stop progress?  Oh, yeah, that has to do with progress, but the aging process can't be stopped either.  Thank God that one can look old AND be old, yet not feel old.