Are We Slowing Down Because We’re Aging?
It’s Thursday evening and King and I are back in the trailer early this evening.
Our grandsons had baseball practice, and we opted to head home rather than sit in a drizzle and watch. It kind of surprised me that King opted to sit this one out, but I suspect he’s not feeling the greatest. Old age is creeping up on both of us and I will confess we are both slowing down. This begs the question, are we slowing down because we are getting old or are we getting old because we are slowing down?
The Skiing Adventures of Family Members
My sister, who is 20 months younger than me, just retired at the end of January. She flew to Reno this week and is meeting her son who will fly in from San Francisco. The two of them will be skiing at Squaw Valley for four days. I’m amazed. I have a difficult time stepping out of the trailer without tripping over the hem of my pants and falling into King.
Next Thursday we will be heading to Big Bear, California – where we will NOT be skiing. Although the temperatures have been in the 40s and 50s there this winter, the ski resorts are making snow. Given how much my knees and ankles ache, I don’t think I will be hitting the slopes. It’s been many, many years since I’ve skied.
My father downhill skied for the last time the winter he was 82. He and Mom (who did not downhill ski) went to Cannonsburg Ski Area in Belmont, Michigan. He said he made two or three runs down the bunny hill and called it a day. I’m fairly certain he wanted to prove to himself he could still do it and realized, after sleeping for two days afterward, that yes, he could do it. No, it wasn’t that much fun. I have to wonder if Mom pushed him a bit. Mom was into walking for exercise.
Memories of Staying Active in Later Years
The last time my parents and I were in Florida together we spent a lot of time looking for seashells on the beach with my granddaughters. I mentioned to Dad that I was surprised he was enjoying the search so much. He leaned over and whispered in my ear, “If I don’t look for shells your mother is going to make me take long walks down the beach with her. I’m tired.” Dad was in his late 80s at the time.
Doing What You Love: The Key to Enjoying Life
Yes, age slows us down, but I know King will still play golf this summer. I doubt there is much that could make him stay away from the course. In fact, after his heart surgery this past summer we were all surprised that he was cleared to play again after eight weeks. He later confessed to our daughter (when he thought I wasn’t listening) that he hadn’t actually been given the okay until the prescribed 12 weeks – which is the timeframe he had been given when he was still in the hospital. I really can’t tell the man much. He won’t eat right, loves Mountain Dew and smokes cigars constantly. His philosophy is he has maybe 20 years left in life and he’s going to do the things he enjoys while he still can. I suppose I can’t argue with that logic. Especially when it makes sense.
Be well. Do what you want. Life is short.
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