You
know time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the
passage of years. It seems like only yesterday that I was young, just out of the Navy, finishing college, and then just married. Just yesterday, it seems, I was embarking on my new life with my wonderful wife. Yet at the same time, it seems like
eons ago, and it makes one wonder where all those years went.
I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then, and of all my hopes and dreams. But,
here it is... the beginning of the winter of my life, and it catches me by surprise.
How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and
thinking that those "older people" were years away from me, and that
winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what
it would be like.
But,
here it is... my friends are retired and getting grey... they move
slower and I see an older person in myself now. Darn it.
Some are in better and
some in worse shape than me, but I see the great change. Not like the
ones that I remember when we were young and vibrant... but, like me, their
age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used
to see but never really thought we'd be.
Each
day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the
day. And taking a nap is not a treat anymore; it's mandatory! Cause
if I don't of my own free will, I just fall asleep where I sit.
And
so now I enter this new season of my life unprepared for all the
aches and pains and the loss of strength, and the ability to go and do things
that I wish I had done but never did. But at least I know that
though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last, this I know: that when it's over on this earth, it's over. A new
adventure will begin!
Yes,
I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done, things I
should have done, but indeed there are also many things I'm happy to
have done. It's all in a lifetime.
So if you're not in your winter yet, let me remind you that it will be
here faster than you think. Whatever you would like to accomplish
in your life, please do it soon. Don't put things off too long. Life goes by quickly!
So, do what you can TODAY, as you can never be
sure whether this is your winter or not ... until it's upon you, and you wonder, as so many do, how that came to be.
You
have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life, so LIVE FOR TODAY and say all the things that you want your loved ones to
remember. Hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things
that you have done for them in all the years past.
"Life" is God's gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one!
URGENT CALL TO REPENTANCE: All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord. And all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before Thee. For the Kingdom is the Lord’s and He rules among the nations. (Psalm 22:27-28)
10 comments:
Likewise not too happy about what age brings. I fall back on what has always worked for me. I get up every morning and start putting one foot in front of the other. That is what I can control.
That's as good as any, and better than most.
You can't know how many times I have said most all these words before.
So many times.
Seems like only yesterday I was single and 16 wondering what I would do with myself. Now in a couple months we celebrate our 45th anniversary, God willing, and that seems like only yesterday.
Definitely I wonder how it all happened so fast.
God bless.
Padre, you sure have a way with words. I see my life as I read your words. I blame the speed of the internet. What used to take days or weeks to find out, now arrives in seconds. Be it good news or bad.
I know these words can be read by you seconds after I hit post
Linda, it all happens at the same speed to everyone. Still it comes as a surprise to most of us, realizing how much time has gone by.
Rob, I hadn't considered the speed of the 'net as a contributing factor, but rather the volume of information. The web can be such a time sink ... sigh.
I often wonder who that old woman is who looks at me from my mirror. Can't be me. Must be my Grandmother, for I don't feel any older than 20. Well, except for my joints that hurt and for all the other stuff I have to take pills for to stay alive. I guess it really is me after all. :)
I understand, Vicki. Every time I see a picture of myself, these days, I wonder "who's that guy who looks like my dad?"
Heard today the Peter Tork, once of Monkees fame has passed. I looked up a recent picture of him. There's the Peter Tork of my memory and the seriously aged Peter Tork of that pic. And I know age is chasing me in the same way.
Now that I'm not working full-time, my wife asks me to e-mail her about celebrity deaths. Specifically, those folks who were pop idols/actors/etc from our childhood years. That's happening at a steady pace, these days. And yes, we have a lot fewer years ahead than behind.
It definitely is not just you, or me, or the other folks above who all think about getting older. I frequently tell my patients not to over-do when starting out with their exercises. The brain still thinks you are in your 30's...the body which is in it's 60's or 70's-80's-90's, is refusing to cash those checks the brain is writing.
I used to able to walk all day long. We went to the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville last week...1.2 million square feet under cover...after walking around from 9-1, I was sooo done in.
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