Turn Back Time
“Getting old sucks.”
- My mom.
Getting old is an interesting concept. At first you can’t wait to be “older”. In elementary school, you loved being able to brag to your friends that you are older than they are as if being 9 puts you higher on the totem pole. You can’t wait to turn 13 and officially be a teenager. 18 allows you to drive and finally 21 makes everyone happy because you finally get to drink (legally), gamble (legally) go to all clubs (legally) and are officially considered an adult. For those years, getting old is awesome. But around “24-ish”…
Things start to change.
Turning 25 brings in phrases like “mid-20’s” and “almost 30” and its absolutely dreadful. People talk about their 30th birthday like they had a death in the family. We start to focus on how old we look and feel and start trying to slow down time. As you reach your 50’s you start to think about the end. You worry about your health and simply pray that your last days aren’t as painful as that relative who suffered from an illness. It’s easy to see how my mother came to her conclusion.
The irony is, getting old is what makes life amazing. The Picture of Dorian Gray was about a man who after getting a self-portrait done, realizes he doesn’t want to lose his youthful looks. So he makes a “deal with the devil” to grant him eternal life. He will cease to age one single day and instead the painting will bear the brunt of the years. In the beginning, life was excellent – knowing that no matter how much time passes, he wouldn’t get a single wrinkle on his face – but as time passed, Dorian began to regret his decision.
He was bored.
Although he never aged, everyone around him did. All of his friends died. Long lasting love was impossible and other aspects of life lost their meaning. It’s aging and the inevitability of death that makes you appreciate every breath that you take. What’s the point of having children if you’re going to outlive them? How can you appreciate falling in love when you’ve done it dozens of times? Why get excited to travel the world if you know you literally have forever to see it? Could landing a great job or celebrating a holiday really make you happy after the 200th year?
Knowing that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed gives today more value. You can’t miss that trip to Europe because you may never have a chance to do that again. Proms, promotions and weddings become incredible memories that make you smile every time you reminisce. It is said that on your tombstone, you cannot control the first and last numbers but it’s the hyphen in the middle that really matters. If you focus on the hyphen rather than just the last number you will quickly find out that getting old doesn’t suck.
It’s evidence of a life lived to the fullest.
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