Age

How many of you thought you would live past 25?  How many 30?  How many 40?  How many 50?  Does it ever stop?  When are you old enough?  Why do people treat you differently when your older?  What is older and when does it happen? Well I'm here to tell you life is not what you expect, I am finding out.

It happened on my 25th birthday.  I was looking forward to having dinner with my family and friends, and the phone call came. Mom calling to wish me Happy Birthday.   "So how does it feel to be a quarter of a century old"?

Oh no what had just happened?

I was happy a few minutes ago at the thought of turning 25.  I was feeling great.  Now, I'm old, I'm almost dead, I'm a quarter of a century old.  That sounds so much more ominous than 25.  This made me start to think about my life and what I had accomplished.  I was 25, I had not accomplished anything except getting married and having kids.  My life was not special.  I was just the girl next door.  What was I going to do with my life.  It was almost over, or so I thought.

Then came 30.  Now 30 is kind of a fun number.  Your not old yet, but people don't treat you like a kid anymore.  My life at 30 was full of all sorts of weird things.  I had more children.  I had divorced.  I had bought a house.  I was on my own and doing rather well, or so I thought. 

Things began to fall apart.  Another failed relationship.  Custody battles.  Then the final straw.  My kids moved with their dad.

I decided to move.  My kids were with their dad.  I felt like my life was going no where fast, except down the proverbial toilet.  Partying, drinking and other things that, at this point in my life, I would rather not talk about.  So when a friend said she was moving, I hopped on the band wagon and went with her and her kids. 

This was the smartest thing I think I have ever done in my life.  Got my sorry butt out of the situation I was in and started all over.  Talk about scarey!!!  I had $50 to my name and knew no one in the town where we were going.  It was over 1000 miles from the home I had known for all but 5 of my 33 years. 

Things started looking up the day we arrived.  I got a job I loved.  I met my present husband.  We got married, we packed up all our stuff one day and moved to the USA.  We moved to be closer to my husbands aging parents.  Life was getting better, or so I thought.

Then came 40.  Now that number does not do much for most people.  The number 40 when talking about age, to most people signifies that they are "OVER THE HILL".  Or so they say.  I do not agree.

My life took a strange turn in my 40's.  The Gulf War started.  My daughter in law was pregnant.  Our oldest son was shipped off to Kwait.  The phone call came one afternoon.  He had been shot.  A mother's worst nightmare.  He was lucky.  He was ok.  He came home 2 days before his son was born. 

Things started looking up.  I went back to school.  During that time, we had a huge tragedy, we lost Tommy(my husband's dad).  He was one of the reasons I went back to school in the first place.  Tommy and Rena(his mom) encouraged me to do the one thing I had always wanted to do, get my RN degree.  I am just sad that Tommy passed away and did not get to see me graduate.  I graduated and passed my nursing boards.  I found jobs that I loved and took on things that I never thought possible.  

People do not realize what they can do as they get older.  The older I get the more things I seem to be able to accomplish.  I do not have all the garbage hanging over me that young people have.  I still party with the best of them, but now my idea of a really good time is a good meal, good shows on TV, talking with my husband and spending time with my family.  Funny how your priorities change.   Life was good, or so I thought

Then my friends, comes the the GREAT number 50.  Now just like the 20's things were going good, until someone in their infinite wisdom made that crappy statement.  "YOUR HALF A CENTURY OLD"!!!  Now that was downright mean. 

Funny how people perceive, what we now call middle age.   My birthday came and went as if nothing had changed.  I got the normal Happy Birthday greetings from the family, kids and friends.  Nothing special.  Just a mile stone that came and went.  Funny, I had expected a big hoopla, and nothing happened.  It was just another day.  We went to dinner, went home and watched TV.  Yippee.  I guess no one else but me saw this as a big day or a big deal.  Can't wait for the next time someone reminds me it is their birthday.  Got it all planned out, or so I thought.

Just over the horizon is another big milestone, "60".  Oh where did the time go?  I look in the mirror and see the girl that just graduated high school still.  Things have not changed much.  I have a few more wrinkles around the eyes (from smiling so much).  I have a different body shape now (built for comfort no longer for speed).  And my heart is bigger than it has ever been (to accomodate all the love for all the people I have in my life).   The world is a different place than it was all those years ago.  Wars have come and gone.  Friends and family have come and gone.   I have stayed the same, or so I thought.