I Love My Age!!

I think we can use 'age' to be an excuse for many things ...

"He's only a baby" ... so they don't sleep on a schedule or walk or talk or anything that exceeds the expectations of that age.

"Terrible Two's" ... an excuse? An explanation? Once again, a two year old gets away with things that may be frowned upon if they were three.

"Teens" ... that's a loaded one. I had a friend that often said her children lost all of their brain cells when they turned 12. I've had three kids, and each of them completely and totally different as they lived the teen years. Once again, we 'expect' certain things of this age group.

"Twenty Somethings" ... the age of living, trying new things. An age where some settle down and others try out their wings. It is an age of experimentation of living a life you haven't lived before. Or not.

"My life began at 40!" ... is the proud exclamation of my mom. I believed she was right, so my 40's sparked some great beginnings for me. I was grateful that my body continued to work the way it always has. Others aren't so lucky ...

"50 is just cruel" ... was a comment I heard when I was in my 40's. Yet I looked at my mom and reflected on all that she was doing in her 50's and I saw no reason why reaching the half century mark should be any different than the rest of my life. I have walked into my 50's embracing the new life ahead of me.

My sisters are 9 and 11 years older than me. I get a preview of the decade ahead, before I live it. My sisters are pretty good role models and I haven't seen anything but good things in store. Settling in and enjoying their adult children and grandchildren. It looks like good times to me!

I have spent countless hours listening to my mom and her sisters visiting. One time, I recapped one of those visits as "hearing loss, cataracts and funerals". Hmmm .... what does lie in wait for me as the decades slip by??

Then I heard Dr. Daniel Amen's 18/40/60 rule:

"When you’re 18, you worry about what everybody is thinking of you; when you 40, you don’t give a darn what anybody thinks of you; when you’re 60, you realize nobody’s been thinking about you at all."

I've decided that I don't need to wait for age 60 to gain that wisdom and live life with a gusto.

At age 50, I have found myself trying new things. On my own! I haven't needed the security blanket of taking someone along with me to find that courage.

At age 50, I am not letting others slow me down. If I want to do something, I am going to do it. On my own, with a friend or making friends as I forge my way.

At age 50, I'm just going for it!! Making plans, setting goals, setting limits and being true to myself.

Age is just a number. It's what is going on inside of you that counts. I plan to remain '27 Forever'. An age where I started making healthy choices for me and my children. An age where I packed up my family and started a new life. An age where I truly began to live.

Sometimes, I think it just can't get any better than this. Then it does.

I plan to keep living my life being amazed that it can just keep getting better!

To 50 and beyond!!!!