When Did You Get Old?

My son was travelling through on his way to an Atlanta Braves weekend with his friend. They stopped at our house to spend the night, before resuming their trek. While I was cooking breakfast for them, I stood and watched the birds and my birdfeeder outside my kitchen window. When Josh came down from his room, I was talking to him about the birds and what types I had seen. He got quiet for a moment, and then he asked, \”When did you get old?\”

I suppose it comes as a shock to our kids that we get old. One morning they wake up, and we appear to have changed during the night. We don\’t move as fast, our hair either turns gray or it turns loose, we begin experiencing more frequent medical problems, and apparently our interests have changed.

I\’ve gone through this with my own mother. One day I went by her house, and not only did she appear to have shrunk several inches, but she also looked very old. She is 70, but because of her health problems, she looks much older than those 70 years. It can be a bit disconcerting.

I don\’t really have any words of wisdom about all this. I guess it just took me aback when Josh asked the question. If you count years, I am getting older. Don\’t feel old inside, most of the time–but then I remember that I have a 31-year-old son, a 29-year-old daughter, and three grandsons (grandsons!). My interests have changed a bit. I do enjoy getting out the old pics and looking at them. Since I\’ve always been a crafter, that doesn\’t seem like much of a change for me. Birds have become a real big interest for me in the past few months, as well. That is new. And the desire to reconnect with old friends has become a passion for me.

One thing about getting older and wiser is that I have begun to recognize what is truly important in life. After my relationship with Jesus, family and then other people become more the focus of my life than things. If I can deposit anything positive into the lives that I touch, then I consider my life successful. And I hope I grow VERY old while I work to accomplish that goal!

Now, about those birds……