Thursday, August 14, 2008

Numbers - Leona

I received this article from Margaret, my 82-year-old friend who lives in Chicago. She is one of the most amazing women I know. She lives life to the fullest and has vision, purpose, incredible insights and overwhelming compassion. She traveled to Moldova with us last spring and touched my life deeply. I figure if she thinks this is good advice then I'm going to heed it!

Oh, her note at the top of the article said, "Right on!"

I say, "Right on, Margaret!" - Leona

Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids?

If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

"How old are you?" The answer: "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five!

You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back.. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead. "How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life. You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony. YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.
But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday! You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; 'I Was JUST 92.'

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. 'I'm 100 and a half!'

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

(This quote has been wrongly attributed to several different authors)
(Photo by Claudecf, Flickr)

1 comment:

pysanki.blogspot.com said...

I love it!

Funny thing is I don't remember turning 18, 19, 20, or 21. I remember becoming a mom, earning my CNA, LPN, finally RN, and am currently working on my BSN. I remember trying to balance motherhood and being a wife, not turning 29, 30, 31, or 32.

It makes me interested to see what other accomplishments I'll encounter as the numbers don't seem all that remarkable.

Currently 34 1/2 :)