It is nothing strange that we as individuals have a hard time coming to grips with the “reality” of growing old. Naturally, “old” is one of those relative terms, depending where you are on the ‘long road a-winding‘. There was a time when I thought someone of 50 years was “old”. Not anymore! Now “old” is more like 80 in my mind.
I fully realize that my experience is nothing new in the human experience, but it is new for me. But there is still one hurdle that I can’t seem to get over in accepting that I am not 25 years old. That is the hurdle of my own mind. For, you see, even though I see other people are aging and realize they cannot be expected to do the things of a much younger person, I can’t seem to apply the reality to myself.
Another thing that interferes with my thinking is looking around me & finding all these older people that can, and do, put an average 30 year old under the table when it comes to physical work or activity. I know a man right now who has 5 years on me & does work that I have see 25 year old guys walk away from with plain old exhaustion. If he can do that, why can’t I?
We have been raised in the USA to believe that we can do anything we set our mind too. I have always believed that, foolish me! I am living proof that just pure will power, without other necessary ‘assets’, will not get something “impossible” done.
A person needs to know their limitations & be willing to admit they actually have them. That is the hard part for many of us. We truly hate to acknowledge the someone else has something that we can’t. As if we really do believe that God created all men equal, without qualification. Though it is noble to believe that all men are created equal in regard to “rights” and in general terms, basic human privileges of a free society. The cold, hard fact of life is that we were not all born equal when it comes to ability, opportunity, health and other individual characterizes the go to make up the whole of who and what we are, individually.
Example, take professional athletes. For a fact, these people have to work very hard in building their bodies to be able to perform in the top small percentage of their generation. Then they must train, train, train to develop the necessary skills that go along with their particular sport. However, it would be a denial of plain fact to think that these people are not “born with gifted bodies” that can be trained to accomplish uncommon acts of strength, speed or other physical feats. The toss of the genetic coin is highly in favor of some people as opposed to most. It matters not how much a hog might want to outrun a racehorse, it ain’t going to happen. He does not have the body to do it, period.
So it is with individuals and the aging process. I know people in their 60’s or 70’s who are as healthy and active as most of us would be pleased with in our 50’s. But it does not necessarily that most people experience such good health into our, so called “golden years”. Now that is a fable if I ever heard one. I don’t think I know of anyone who really will describe their “old age” experience as “golden”! Most that I talk to call is a lot of other names, none of them complimentary.
All that to simply say: “Ernie’s world is trying to face the grim reality that we are aging.” But not “old”, just yet.
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