New Chapter

I'm feeling a shift in my subconscious.

I know this shift is caused by recognizing that I'm aging. We all know we get older with every passing day. But to actually realize I'm an older person is life changing.

Until recently, I never thought about my age. I assumed it would always be this way. Inside, I feel like I'm the same person I've been since I came fully into the age of reason. Two things have changed this for me.

First, the realization that my body isn't able to do the same things it always could. I'm not a fitness type person and I know I have not been kind to my physical self. I've even voiced concerns in the last few years about needing to get into better physical shape being an imperative as the window for doing so was starting to close. It's the little things that I see beginning to change such as being less strong so lifting or shifting objects is now more difficult. It's a wake-up call.

Now that the cornovirus is sweeping through the country (and across the planet), I realize for the first time, I fall into a demographic that needs to be more cautious. In past pandemics, I just went about my business as normal. Not this time - fortunately, I work for a company that has closed all physical sites in favor of working from home.

Of course there are other signs of aging taking place - getting some silver strands in my hair (and worse, eyebrows!) and thankfully, very few wrinkles (only those lines around my eyes from squinting - why do I not wear my reading glasses!) But, none of these has bothered me.

I know I can weather these latest indications by doing a daily fitness routine and by limiting exposure to other people.

It occurs to me this is just one more thing nobody told us about - you know that list of things your mother never shared...

- How to deal with work/life balance stress
- What menopause is going to do to your body and how to cope
- How to survive losing a parent
- What its like to grow old and how to do this gracefully

Getting old is something not everyone gets to experience. I realize I've been blessed and I truly look forward to making the most of this new experience as I've done at every other stage of my life. I just wish I'd been better prepared. Feels like this happened over night!