by TD Small

Created on: March 11, 2008

Middle age creeps up and grabs a hold of you without warning. Mentally, I don't think I'll ever grow up, but my aching knees and sore muscles tell a different story. How did I get to be 50? I'll never know. What once sounded so old now seems like a jumping off point for the rest of my life. My friends and I used to talk about what we wanted to do, now we discuss what we want to not do, which is mainly continue to work full time.

It's not so much that monumental number that is wrecking havoc with my free wheeling lifestyle. It's all the baggage that goes with it. At home, I get to the top of the stairs and can't remember why I'm there. After a few minutes of racking my brain, I go back downstairs hoping something, anything will jog my memory. When nothing happens, back upstairs I go only to finally remember what I was going to do just as I reach the first step, and of course if I truly want to accomplish the task I have in mind, I need something in the laundry room downstairs. I think this continual marching up and down stairs trying to regain my sanity should count double when I add up my weekly minutes of aerobic exercise.

I've been complemented on my complexion recently. How do I keep away the wrinkles? I have been asked this by youngsters in their twenties. These twenty-somethings are just now starting to realize that they too will someday be 50, if they're lucky. After admitting that my secret for youthful skin is an investment in pricey facial creams and lotions, I then looked down at my hands. These hands have changed diapers, feed pigs and cattle, planted seeds, and harvested potatoes. They have caught softballs, thrown back basketballs, and pulled sleds and wagons, but mainly they have weathered like an old barn. The kind of abandoned barn you see along the side of the road, with peeling paint and dilapidated sides. Like many nostalgic people my age I plan to start a restoration project soon, unfortunately for me it will be on my hands.

While 50 may not be where I think I should be, it is where I am in my life. Instead of living with regrets and wishing I was younger, richer, or anything else, I think I'll relish this time of my life. While I may not be as young as I once was, I am a lot smarter and am ready to take on the world, if I can just remember where I put my car keys.

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