Sixty and Whose Counting?

Age, it’s really just a number, right? I have never really looked my age, when I was a mere 13 years old, people thought I was in my twenties. Now that I am sixty, people tell me I look younger. I was, however, born an old soul. I have lived many, many lives. I am not talking the mystic reincarnation, but in my own lifetime.

One of my most favorite poems, written by the great, Stanley Kunitz, is titled “The Layers”. The poem resonates in my soul. I feel, as Kunitz, wrote, “ I have walked through many lives, “ . My journey has not always been easy, if it were, I would not be whom I am today. So, I breathe deep, take in the lessons I have gathered in me and strive to move forward. Moving forward requires my aging, getting older. Why fight it when so many I have loved never made it this far.

I tell myself, the number does not bother me, and it truly does not. What does bother me is the fact I have left many things undone. So here I sit at the grand age of sixty contemplating what I can do about it. The past is done, I cannot go back, nor would I want. I can only strive to do the things that really matter and treasure this age.

Today is the day, a new day left wide open. I shall walk into it not in fear, but in praise of the One who has given me this most precious gift. I can only imagine what lies ahead, and I am ready.

Teresa Gale
2017