So…forty five. I was never fond of the dates, not even when the dates were small in numbers. Mind you it was easy to escape before, as having a birthday straight after the start of new years was kind of too much of an effort. So it just happened that we didn’t celebrate it much. Not that I do now, mind you.
I’ve been thinking about that age today and decided I do not like it. One step to the right in the “age group” tick boxes in official forms and questionnaires. It is also somewhat over the half now, closer to the dreaded fifty. I used to think life ends after that. Silly, I know, but it was truly my belief my whole childhood. A friend of mine who is over 60, defined himself as “well past my 'best before', even 'sell by' date”. I’m beginning to understand what he meant.
How do we know what is our personal “best by” date. Is it when the physical limitations become too obvious even to our own resenting eyes? Or is it when the spirit no longer calls for adventures and we become the biggest fans of our own home? In the world of “seniors” how do people go about finding out who is “still good” and who has been already “used by”?
No, I think, I’m not going to enjoy my forty five. There is something in the sound of it that brings that picture of a big jump from the previous forty four. From today’s date the forty four look way too young. But alas, jump we do and since I just did, might as well look around where I landed and get used to the new level of being still “best before”. Well, I hope that I still am...