ON AGING

by Harriette J. Schwartz
(Tarzana CA)

ON AGING
by Harriette J. Schwartz

I just posted the August birthday shout outs on my Boomerville USA social network and mine is among them. Yep I will turn 59 on the 26th. I was talking to my 23 year old daughter Merelle and mentioned that to her and her eyes widened as she said, "Mom, I thought you were turning 57!" Somehow 59 versus 57 seems to make a big difference..not only to my daughter but to me as well.

I remember the elated feeling I had 9 years ago and how turning 50 was a joyous event. Somehow approaching the end of yet another decade, this one my 6th is giving me pause (or perhaps that is indigestion?) So I tried to figure out why. I realized that my dad died at the age of 58 and here I am a year older than he was..a sobering thought to some degree.

I am not unhappy about my age, I never have been. It is truly just a number. Hell, you accept this number and be who you are and that is that. After all the alternative sucks, yada yada yada.... Nope you cannot turn the clock back and you cannot really revisit the past. Oh yeah, I will in August when the 40th anniversary of Woodstock 1969 occurs. I was there and have the pix to prove it..even sold them to a great new book on the subject and used them in one I wrote myself about the experience. Its more a sort of scary wonderment on getting here and hoping to continue to get here..to my birthday I mean..

It is not the wisdom and sage that is supposed to come with age, nor is it the aches and pains you get so much more easily from doing so much less. Those things simply come with the territory pallies. Maybe its the feeling of peering over my shoulder and having expected to see more accomplished..oh well in that I am not alone. Time, time in a bottle, time takes its toll, the bell tolls for thee. These are only words or maybe they used to be just words.. Perhaps now they mean more.

I still intend to celebrate life.. Mine and those of those in mine whom I appreciate; have as pallies and of course love, like my daughter and my family. After all, what else is there to do? And thus I guess..so it goes....
So I will close by saying simply to all my fellow August baby boomers: let’s just celebrate the whole month and I will stop waxing so darn philosophically...