Age Is Just A Number - or is it?
New Year's Resolutions - Just Say No!
Hello, and I can’t believe it’s almost the end of January already. It’s too late in the Year to say Happy New Year (actually, what is the unwritten etiquette for when we stop saying ‘Happy New Year’ to people?) but I hope you all had a great time.
I was at a gathering the other evening and there was a group of us men standing around, beer in hand, generally moaning about the various aches, pains, illnesses and injuries that we had all accumulated during 2024. It wasn’t quite one-up-manship, but it was beginning to get to the stage where one of the younger ones (in his early 30s) would lift his top and show a childhood scar from falling off a skateboard and say ‘This is still giving me gyp after all these years.’ One of the other guys would scoff and say ‘That’s nothing! Look at this.,’ lifting his shirt and turning his back to show an angry-looking scar. ‘Coral reef. Philippines.’ Said with a certain amount of smugness.
Another guy snorted. ‘Just wait until you’re my age. 40 is when it all starts to go downhill. You start to fall apart.’
At this point, I interjected with the old adage, ‘Age is just a number. But my knees hurt.’
Being the oldest of the group at 62, I felt that age was in fact, a whole lot more than just a number. It was the sum total of who I am, having managed to have orbited around the sun 62 times and still be here.
Scientifically speaking, after 60 years, we begin our senescent phase, the part of our life where the degeneration of our body begins, and perhaps subconsciously I’ll be fighting it all the way.
My age is a reflection of my experience gained over time, experiences gained through failure, idiocy and the occasional triumph. Ageing is an unavoidable process and how we choose to handle our ageing is a defining part of our identity and character…and health.
The biggest thing I have learned through these years is that age doesn't define potential, that age doesn't define what a person has achieved or what they can still accomplish. People can achieve anything at any age. Ok, I can’t do backflips or skateboard easily like I used to, but I know that if I trained for 3 or 4 weeks I’d be back to doing them with ease - or end up in hospital.
A friend of mine (I’ll call him J) who is 91, still plays tennis regularly. No, he can’t sprint for the ball like he used to but this doesn’t stop him from having a go. He can still move around the court like someone much younger. He also travels abroad every year on holiday alone. Everyone and their dog has asked him what his secret is, myself included, and he always says that it’s happiness and that he knows his limits and he gets up every day and moves. He said that the day you stop moving is the day when age will catch you and it’s all over. He also has a very active social life.
I like to think that I engage in positive ageing, where I acknowledge that I’m getting older; but I don’t stress about it. To be frank, my biggest worry about getting older is that I would end up being a burden to my partner or family. To this end, I try to maintain a healthy lifestyle without being a zealot and I have a busy social life and do lots of walking with my hounds every day. I also try and put my socks on every day, balanced on one leg while standing up.
But most of all, I fill my life with doing what I love.
New Year’s Resolutions - Just Say No!
I have never made any New Year’s resolutions, but this year, I have resolved to put my foot down and say ‘No’, when people ask me to do them a favour. It can’t be that hard. Don’t get me wrong, I like to help people out, but it has started to get very busy where I end up having less time for myself.
It hasn’t worked.
Until the next post, stay energetic and be happy.
Best wishes
Simon JJ Green