I was on the phone with an old friend yesterday and she jokingly said "How did we get HERE?"
Here meaning in our early to mid 50s.
At one point in life you are talking with your friends about barbies and The Brady Bunch, Then boys and parties. It changes to college choices, complaining about rent prices, marriage, babies and jobs.
Somehow it leaps forward and it turns to our teens getting their licenses, proms and college applications.
At a blink of an eye our discussions change with friends. It is our kids weddings, grand babies, and making money stretch to enjoy retirement. We laugh at "leakage", cry at death and complain about aches and pains. We say things like "They will understand when they get our age". Or "Yup, I used to think that way, too".
We start to really, really realize we are not immortal. We have had loved ones die, some are parents and others are just simply too damn young to have left us in the middle of life's journey.
It might seem weird but I think about when I will die. I don't want to go too soon and I don't want to get too old, either.
We don't get to choose, though do we? And even if we said Ok, I want to die when I'm 75, getting from here to there will be so quick that we would probably change our minds. Honestly, 75 doesn't feel that far away,
I wonder what we will talk about then? Hopefully, it is what is being served in the dining room and when is bingo. My mom is no longer in touch with any friends except for my friend, Jane, that she considers as a second daughter. She just has it in her head when she moved that was that. It makes me sad that she is missing out on one of life's joys. Having friends to say-Remember when?
This post wasn't meant to be so serious! I started out with it in my mind, my conversation with my friend and reflection on how interesting it was that the topics change with age.
But reflection is never a bad thing, I don't think.
I had to let go of so many regrets and wrong doings done to me or by me. Life is simply too short. It just rushes by us that by the time you are over a half a century old, you realize Wow-we are HERE.
We are here because we are blessed. Because we survived ourselves. We are meant to impart wisdom to the younger generation. Odds are they won't listen to us or maybe they are smarter? Doesn't matter, when they get here-they will be talking about the same things we are.
I reflect back to how much our world has changed, how much we have made progress in life. Yet, man, are we still so far away from getting anywhere or what?
The hate is so rampant, the judgments, the discrimination. Why are these issues so slow and our time is so fast? We have had so many adults go from there to here. There to here. And yet we can not get our act together enough to simply love people because they are humans? If people can't love people, we will stay a mess.
So, I will just continue to go from here to there, to have faith in human mankind, and to remember to be kind.
Laughter is the best medicine. Do it til you leak,
