When I was 40 to 45 I felt like I was 21. I’m sure that sounds strange and it’s hard to describe exactly what that means but I’ll try. I’m sure I had more knowledge and perhaps more wisdom but my mind, soul and spirit felt 21: smart, hip, cool, sassy, alert and ready to take on the world.
I reached age 55—and imagine, I still felt like I was 21. Same thing, just one difference. My body started telling me it didn’t feel 21. A few aches and pains surfaced but I chose to ignore them and told my body I was 21.
Now, I’ve reached an older age and I still feel like I’m 21 in my mind, soul and spirit. My body, on the other hand is shouting through my aches and pains that I’m an old lady who feels stiff and sore in the morning—well, even after sitting for a little while. Trust me, I don’t like confessing this to anyone, but it is all true. Alas, I’m a young person trapped in an old body that won’t stay young.
After giving this some thought, I’ve reached the conclusion that there are measures a person can take to keep one’s body a little more agile and supple—but not many. I believe its God’s plan that as we age our body deteriorates through use and the environmental assaults that surround us. This helps to make way for those who are young, perhaps even 21, to step in and help us get around, help us conquer our difficulties and eventually take over our tasks in this old world. Believe me, it helps our prayer life, too, because we despair that the young people are up to the task.
But we truly did the best we could with what we had and so have to turn over the running of life to the young hoping with all we’ve got that they do a better job than we did and despairing that they won’t because we raised them. But, in the nick of time, God releases us from our earthly ties and we soar to worlds unknown leaving the mess behind.
If you are young, please, please, look to God for the answers and do the best you can with what you’ve been given and pray, pray, pray. I’ll be waiting for you to join me someday.
