I am a man of average height but with a broader frame with hands that some describe as paws and feet of length and width that wouldn’t look out of place on a tall man.
The current domicile is in a two story home with a steep staircase whose individual stairs are too small for my feet.
Though I am not a mountain goat I am sure footed enough that I blow up and down the stairs without concern.
Some months back while descending my foot slipped and I launched myself from five steps above the landing.
Why?
Because I wasn’t sure I was going to recover my balance and didn’t want to tumble down the damn things.
So I stuck the landing and was impressed that I didn’t feel the after effects for more than a few hours.
I kid around about it and my general durability but there was a moment where I wondered if I had just given myself a heart attack at 53.
Have I mentioned that I have a hard time with that number because it seems unreal to me. I am always surprised to see my reflection because he looks so much older than I expect.
Age Is Relative
There are still plenty of older people in my life who are quick to tell me how very young I am and I understand that.
I have a similar reaction to the 35 and 40 year-olds who tell me how old they are.
It is a privilege to be able to say I don’t feel this old and that I don’t think I act as old as I thought the fifty somethings were when I was much younger.
Decent genes, a dose of luck and a good attitude have enabled me to beat every bad day I have ever had.
Not everyone gets to say that and it is tied into why the long time readers see me discussing plans for the coming years.
Got at least another 20-25 summers or if you want to look at in different terms another 1000 weeks plus or minus something.
That is assuming that I keep doing what I have been doing and that I find ways to recover when I trip, slip or fall.
It also assumes that I don’t contract any sort of terminal illness. Got no interest or plans to do so and am trying to do what I can to avoid such things within reason
Not going to cut out every vice or unhealthy thing in my life because there is a balance and given the inability to determine the exact moment of expiration I am good with it.
Balance…life is about balance.
I count myself as one of those lucky people who doesn’t look as old as I am. I’m not flattering myself; it’s just that whenever I tell people how old I am they stare in disbelief. There’s something sweet in being a black man who never stayed out in the sun too much and doesn’t have any wrinkles on my body. Course, I wish I’d lost weight 20 years ago instead of over the past 7 years, which might have kept me at being barely taller than 6′; oh well…
The good and the bad intermixed or something like that. Well, I was trying to come up with some sort of wise answer based upon something I heard but it is not flowing freely.
So as someone who also has surprised people with his age let me say it is a cool thing to have for however long we have it.