We all grow older each day. That is not the type of "growing older" of which I speak. I am talking about reaching "full retirement age" as per the Social Security chart. At first as I approached this milestone I was in denial of my age. I dyed my hair, took exercise classes to challenge my body beyond its capabilities, etc.
The next phase I went through could probably have been characterized as clinical depression. All that I could see for myself was collecting my Social Security check and waiting for my body to continue to fail me.
Now I am embracing where I am in the life cycle. I stopped dying my hair, stopped pushing my body to do things that it really isn't cut out to do, and have many thoughts and aspirations about how to spend the next part of my life. I also have changed my lifestyle in terms of what I eat and where I purchase the food and household products that I use.
I find myself yearning for a simple life where one can shop in small stores where the proprietors and clerks know you, if not by name, at least by sight. Another change is that I am more conscious of how my behavior impacts the environment both today and for future generations.
Because of my financial situation, I will have to work beyond my full retirement age, "God willing and the creek don't rise". When my situation will allow, I would love to live in or outside of a small town on enough land to have an organic garden and a few chickens. Maybe growing older brings us back to nature, back to the beginnings of our species.
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