"Aging Gracefully"

I just recently had a birthday on which I turned 46 years old. I have to admit that it was a little alarming, as it put me on the closer side to 50. Birthdays always make me introspective and cause me to think about aging, which by the way, I hope that I am able to do gracefully.

It does not help me that my wonderful husband and two grown children feel so free to make random comments about my age. My husband said "you're almost 50 years old!" I replied by saying "I am not. I have years to go before I will be 50."

My daughter, who just happened to over hear the conversation, was more than happy to add, "well mom, if you rounded it up...." all the sudden she's a math whiz.......

I was nearly pushed over the edge last night when my husband called me "half-century girl". To make it even better he was grinning as he spoke. This to me, was beyond unbelievable considering he is almost two years older than I am.

I must tell you that some of his past comments have been so bad that he has been instructed by one of his friends to stop and count before he voices great remarks such as the one I just told you about. Needless to say, sometimes he forgets.

My son does his part to help his father and his sister as well. He recently became alarmed, regarding my forgetfulness. He informed me that he intended to tell his father that I needed a complete physical because there was something wrong with me.

I assured him that the forgetfulness was normal for women over 40. I should have said something like "not to mention the contributing stress factor of living with you people." I didn't. I suppose I was just too touched by his concern.

My explanation did stop the demands that I get a physical, but now when I have a conversation with him, and I have forgotten something he's told me previously, he just throws his hands up and says "oh, that's right, your ovaries are shutting down." We are a family that thrives on humor.

There are other cons to aging, like the wrinkles, and things like that, and they are hard to accept at times. There is a poem, written by Sylvia Plath, called "Mirror" that is brutally honest about aging. In this poem, she refers to a woman looking in a mirror and seeing herself as she ages.

The poem says, as if the mirror were speaking, "In me she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman rises toward her day after day".

Ms. Plath also refers to the moon and candles as liars. She does this because they soften the signs of aging with their light, and so we don't see ourselves truthfully in their presence.

I have decided that I am not going to spend my time worrying about aging. I am instead going to be grateful for all of the birthdays that the Lord allows me to have. I am pretty sure this will work for me, at least until I reach that birthday that comes after my 49Th.

On the flip side, I have to be honest. I may stay away from mirrors more, and I do intend to make the most of moonlight and candles every chance I get. I also have to admit that I buy my share of miracle face creams and I try not to let gray hairs linger too long. ( A woman has to do what she has to do. Right?)

Thinking back on that whole statement I made earlier about hopefully aging gracefully.......I think after writing this I have a better understanding for what that means. I believe it means I'm going to have to keep a really good balance in the coming years, between I don't care how old I am, and doing what I can to hide the signs.......