The year I was turning 50, I suddenly began receiving AARP mailings. I was quite offended and would quickly take them to the recycling bin while muttering under my breath the entire time. I’m not old yet. Good grief.
So, this year, I’m turning 65 and have been receiving all the Medicare mailings for the last six or seven months. Instead of muttering under my breath, I’m a bit more vocal saying “I get it, I’m turning 65…now would you please stop mailing this stuff to me.” I’m not old yet!
I remember my mom laughing really hard years ago about me being so offended by the AARP mailings. I wish I could call her now and complain about all the Medicare mailings so I could hear her laugh again.
I did meet with a Medicare expert last week. Her presentation was interesting and informative. I learned a lot that I didn’t know. She even told me I was a young 64, almost 65. (That didn’t help.) How on earth could I possibly be old enough to have to deal with all this stuff?
One day during the years that I cared for my parents, we were sitting at their kitchen table drinking coffee, and I asked them how old they felt mentally. They both said that in their minds, they felt like they were in their late 30’s or maybe early 40’s. My dad said, “I feel young in my mind, but I don’t know how my body has gotten so old!”
Just like the annual seasons and the changes they bring, we all go through the different seasons of our lives. These seasons bring different changes for us. Some, like grandchildren and retirement, and time to travel, are joyful changes. Others, like health issues and losing people dear to us, not so much.
We recently had a visit from some old friends. I’ve known them for almost 40 years. When we first met, we had new babies and both couples were in the season of learning to be parents, and all our parents were still living. Now, we each have grandchildren and are either retired or near retirement age. We are learning to be grandparents, and we are discovering what our lives after our careers will look like.
It’s interesting how much our conversations have changed and also how much they have stayed the same. We still talk about our children and our families, where we have traveled or intend to travel, and how we try to stay healthy. We talk about the books we’ve read and the movies we’ve seen. We still share good recipes and talk about new foods we’ve tried and restaurants we like. Now, however, we also talk about medical issues and the friends and family we miss who are gone from our lives. We talk about the kind of exercise we get and the medicines and supplements we take. It’s different but it’s also the same. It’s comforting to have friends who have known us in the different seasons of our lives and who have gone through them with us.
While our friends were visiting, we went on a hike at a local Nature Preserve. Maybe we weren’t as quick as we used to be, but we sure enjoyed the time together out in nature. I might have been a little sore the next day, but I’m not old yet!
Happy Mother’s Day Weekend to all the moms out there. This is my second Mother’s Day without my own mom and I miss her so very much!
