Please Share 3 Things You Appreciate about Being Old

@sstopalian

@hartman966

@hartman966

Frank Cat,
As Yoda said, "There is no TRY; either DO or NOT DO! Enjoy the Grandchildren, teach what you know to be true. (Whether it really is or isn't doesn't matter.) The Tooth Fairy exists, so does Santa Clause. Teach Concepts which are hard to teach but in the end more meaningful. Teach then Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness as life long goals and not just cute phrases from the history books. Tell them about history and why they need to be aware of it. (If you forget history then someone will be forced to repeat it.) Be a good story teller and don't forget to listen to them. The grand children may tell you things you didn't want to know but now you do! All of us like to talk, and sometimes being a good listener is more important. Most Important for you is Enjoy Life!

I am 86 and am thankful for having family that take time out of their busy schedule to visit, a chance to see grand children mature into productive young adults. I remember when person telling me that the nice thing about getting old you can say what you feel, they will just chalk it up as old lady. I find myself expressing myself now that I’m older, verbally and willing to dance when the music starts playing. Not worried that someone is going to say “act your age”!

One of the good things about being old is just getting to be old.

Of my high school peers, born the same year as me, one died on graduation night, 17 years old. Another suffered a terrible brain injury in her mid-20s, lingering comatose for 15 years, and three died of early cancer. A wonderful fellow lived a life that went tragic, dying at 60, and the woman who was a brilliant writer with mental illness committed suicide after being ripped off in an internet scam.
Most of us have made it into our 70s, often thanks to medical wonders...and great dentistry.

So, when I look at things simply, I feel very lucky that I have this opportunity to experience my 77th year, still learning, and grateful for my endodontist's good work. Having life is a wonderful gift.

One thing I appreciate about being older is private commenorations. For example, the first time you do something really pleasant, like take your child out to lunch to celebrate finishing the school year well, and your child talks over his summer plans, it seems like a good time. It’s memorable. The second year the celebration happens in the same way, it seems more meaningful, a richer experience because of the memory of the lunch the previous year. And as years go on and you repeat the end of the school year lunch out, it becomes a ritual, something you always do together, a commémoration and it grows in meaning and layers of appreciation each year.

So we old folks have a lot more layers of memory from these commémorations than younger folks do. We have many years of memories of the event, so much richer and deeper layers of memories than younger folks have. I am sorry for them, but they will catch up one day.

@edsutton I get it! I still correspond with a couple of people from my high school graduating class (the drunken crew of '62), and although hundreds of miles away, attended a couple of reunions (50 year and 55 year). One of my correspondents, who organized the 60-year reunion, remarked that if we keep losing classmates, we can hold the next reunion in a phone booth. We remember what phone booths are... or were.

@tatiana987 I have an “avocado tool”. Found it at Target. It has a toothed circle in the middle that fits over the pit. Press, turn, and it comes right out! I also have a bagel cutter as that was the big thing for the emergency rooms in New York. Bagel slicing accidents.

Being older allows me freedom to be myself, to have self compassion and to have full agency of how I choose to live my day.