I’ve been growing up again. I do this periodically. Technically I grew up many moons ago when I arrived at 21 years old, grew boobs, and thought I knew everything. This, of course, was laughable. Of course we all grow physically (and, in due course, hopefully, stop growing, but this is not a given…), but then comes the ever-increasing need to grow up mentally. Well, I thought I had done that as well. Went to school. Got degrees. But that seemed not quite enough, and most of my prized knowledge got outdated anyway.
...learning how to share...
I will say that marriage and family does demand a certain amount of growing up. After all, you have to least make the attempt to stay ahead of your kids for a while anyway. And living with a spouse does demand learning how to share.
Death grows you up in a hurry...
Death grows you up in a hurry, I found. When people you love die, I discovered that I did learn to live without them, even though I thought I never would, and pain does heal, even though missing them goes on. What became really interesting about death was when the people dying began to get closer in age to me, and suddenly I began to feel a little less immortal. This growing up is definitely not for sissies!
I have perspective...
Now when I grow up, I want to be like Angela Lansbury. I want to be able to contribute, to be artistic, to be creative, to have all my marbles like she does. There is nothing like a good role model when gravity is becoming a concern! And suddenly I discovered I have perspective, something I didn’t know much about when I was young. Now I can impress all the younger folks with it.
After all, there has to be a good reason for getting older!
You might also enjoy "On Noticing"
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