Thoughts on turning six o

It's funny how birthdays evenly divisible by 10 are thought of as milestones in life.  At twenty you become an adult, at 30 you should at least be starting to get your shit together, and at 40 you are solidly into middle age.  At fifty you get a glimpse of what old age can be like and you think, "a half century... Hoo Ha!"

Looking a bit goofy as I wait to blow out the candles.

I'm sixty this week and am trying to figure out what that means in terms of milestones.  I guess the big thing for me is that at 60 I am not working at a paying job and have the time to consider what I want to do, minute by minute and day by day.  Having the time to consider, instead of deciding and moving on to the next thing is a luxury, I know.  I'm finding it to be totally wonderful to be able to take my time about things, reverse decisions, and look at situations from alternate perspectives.

I was talking to my 92 year old mother yesterday and she said that she feels the same at 92 as she did at 82 and 72 and 62 and 52.  That got me thinking that our bodies and our minds age at different times and at different speeds.  The body grows really fast until you are 20 something but the mind lags a little bit behind.  Thus you have 21 year old men and women who have strong bodies ready to go to war for their country but their minds are not mature enough to realize that that can be a really bad idea.  You may be strong enough to stay up all night but foolish enough to spend that time drinking and drugging.

Land Anchor by Keith Dekker

For most people the 30s are the time for the mind to catch up with the body and we realize our true potential.... or not.  I personally think that the 30s are a "make it or break it" period in life.  Then by 40 the joints are getting sore and you can't seem to keep up with the youngsters but this failure of the body is balanced by the onset of wisdom. Oh wisdom, what a slippery little duck you are.

In my late 40s I hit several plateaus.  I felt fairly mature and sometime even wise.  My confidence level was pretty stable and my body, while a little worn out, seemed to hit a good stride.  For me, at least, and evidently for my mom, this time of life begins a slow steady rise in maturity and a very subtle decline in health that can last til you exit this world. 

Do I feel 60? No, not really.  But if 60 is the new 50 then I guess I'm cruising along right where I should be.  I'm realizing that the way I feel now and the way I am now will most likely continue for many years to come.  And I realize just why older folks always say on their birthday, " Well I certainly don't feel like I'm (fill in the blank) years old."

As I stand here on the road I see it stretch straight towards the horizon, and when I turn around I can see the travels that have brought me thus far.

When I ride the ocean I know that because of the curvature of the earth I'm only seeing about 3 miles of water.  I also know that the ocean continues on for a long and unknown distance. For some reason I feel that the ride before me will be constant as I chase that duck to the ends of the earth.  Ah 60, what an age.