A gray head is a crown of glory; It is found in the way of righteousness. Proverbs 16:31 (NASB)
My daughter was upset this week because she found a couple of gray hairs in her head. She is fortunate she got her dad’s hair, or she’d be fighting a whole head-full by now. I was fighting a couple in my early twenties, and by her age, had completely gray hair. I was telling someone yesterday that for most of our marriage, people thought her dad was my little brother. They wouldn’t say that now. Even though I do have gray hair, I don’t have a lot of wrinkles, and I can run circles around most of the people I know—even those who are ten or more years younger than I am. As long as you’re healthy, aging is much more a state of mind than body.
Even so, I do know the clock is ticking. Another birthday this month reminds me that unless the Lord returns soon, death is lurking around the corner. My grandmother died at 42. My mom died at 62. I’ve already outlived both of them. Believe it or not, death doesn’t bother me either. Being old and mentally feeble is a much worse alternative. For almost three years before she died, my mom didn’t know who I was most of the time. The day she died, a woman in her nursing home told me she’d always envied my mom because she could run around while the lady was confined to a wheelchair with one amputated leg. I told her she was the lucky one because she still had her mind.
Aging is the natural consequence of sin, and it seems to have compounded through the centuries. The first people lived almost 1000 years. Now we get 70 or so if we’re blessed with longevity, but even that comes with a price. Wrinkles, aches, and pains are the minimum. Most of the elderly suffer much more. Even the label “elderly” is a stigma. It’s as if our life has much less value to society. Not “as if.” If a drunk driver killed a 70 year old, the insurance company would pay the family far less than if he’d killed a 20 year old. That 70 year old could be on the verge of being a best-selling author or discovering the cure for cancer. It probably doesn’t matter. He’s considered old and useless.
Finances are the hardest part of aging. Because society places so little value on us, finding a job becomes almost impossible after a certain age even if you are healthy enough to hold one. My ex-husband ran multi-million dollar companies for forty years. Now he works on a loading dock at Lowes. And because he no longer makes what he used to, you guessed it. Did you ever hear the old song, “I’ve got tuppence?” And Social security thinks I can live on half of what they give him. Am I half a person?
But this post is not meant to be a gripe session. According to the Bible, gray hair is a crown of glory and a prize. The fifth commandment says, “Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long on the earth.” I do enjoy this time in my life so much. I have more friends than I’ve ever had. I love writing, and finally being an author after so many years. I’ve been blessed with wonderful children and grandchildren I love deeply. I am happy. God has blessed me greatly, and provided for all my needs. I am so grateful to Him. He loves us old fogies! Thank you, Lord.
God bless you all! Teresa
Question of the Day: What’s the hardest part for you about getting old?
Teresa Talks Taboo 