As both you faithful readers know, I don\u2019t like birthdays. Specifically, I don\u2019t like my birthday. I don\u2019t really know why, I just don\u2019t like my birthday \u2014 never have, even when I was a kid. I don\u2019t think its because I\u2019m getting older… I get older every day. There\u2019s just something (that I\u2019ve never been able to put my finger on) that I don\u2019t like.<\/p>\n
But \u2014 whether I like it or not, birthdays come along every year, and I don\u2019t disagree with the saying that \u201cgetting old is better than the alternative.\u201d
\nAnd today\u2019s the day \u2014 I\u2019m no longer in my seventies and fear that I\u2019m rapidly approaching my \u2018best before\u2019 date. Being this old, I\u2019ve learned everything. Now I just have to remember it.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m pretty new to being 80 \u2014 but now that I\u2019m here, I feel no sense of \u201cachievement\u201d \u2014 I just wonder how the heck I got to be so old. When you reach any age, it\u2019s really not an achievement \u2014 there\u2019s a lot of luck involved. A couple of people have asked me if I dreaded getting to this age. Well, no. It just happened.
\nSo here I am at 80 \u2014 am I happy? Actually, I am. Happier than I\u2019ve ever been? No, I\u2019ve been so fortunate and blessed in my life that just about everything has made me happy. When I met Claire, when we got married, when David and Kelly were born, when Emily, Locke, Rory and Ellie were born…. certainly all those times were happier than turning 80. Of course if I listed all the things that made me happier than getting old, this would be a very long blog.<\/p>\n
Some people seem to think when you reach a certain age, you can speak your mind, do what you want and even be rude because you no longer have to worry about what people think. But actually, politeness and good manners are important no matter what your age. I do still care about what people think and I still worry about many of the same things…like what the future holds for our children and grandchildren.<\/p>\n
Maybe one of the more comforting things about growing old is an increased ability to not take things too seriously. Another thing that\u2019s changed, is my ideals. I usually don\u2019t admit, or at least tell people that I don\u2019t have ideals. When I was younger, I had loftier ideals and thought I could actually change things and make them better. Today, I still rant and rave, but now I\u2019m more or less content to simply deplore the state of things. I don\u2019t think that means that I don\u2019t care, I\u2019ve just become more aware my limitations \u2014 and sort of accepted the limitations of our leaders \u2014 and everyone in general, I guess. I don\u2019t try to convert people to my way of thinking and try not to feel superior because some of these people appear to be lacking in intelligence.<\/p>\n
The last 10 or 12 years that I worked, I had a sign in my office that read, \u201cYou Just Can\u2019t Fix Stupid!\u201d I thought it was true then and I think it\u2019s true today. You can try<\/em> to fix most everything and you can fight<\/em> a lot of things, like evil. But if you\u2019re up against stupid, you\u2019re helpless. I have come to accept the fact that human beings are inclined to behave in ways that are often unimaginable \u2014 sometimes its factors like evil, but sometimes, I\u2019m convinced, it\u2019s stupidity. And everyone seems to think they\u2019re \u201cright.\u201d God is always on their \u201cside.\u201d Even athletes thank God for being on their side and helping them to victory. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As both you faithful readers know, I don\u2019t like birthdays. Specifically, I don\u2019t like my birthday. I don\u2019t really know why, I just don\u2019t like my birthday \u2014 never have, even when I was a kid. I don\u2019t think its … Continue reading
\nI guess as I ponder life in, here, my 80th year, my good luck, long life and years of happiness is not so much as a result of having God on<\/em><\/span> my side, but more the result of having God by<\/em><\/span> my side.
\n\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n