My 80th birthday is coming soon. It is one that even in my wildest dream I never imagined would happen. When I was in my teens I thought I would die before I turned 40. Reaching 21 was kinda cool. At least I could then legally drink alcohol. But then again my college years were all about making enough money to get a diploma. Money wise I barely squeaked through.
When I turned 70 was still active enough to put off the fears of old age. But, as the decade progressed, it creeped up on me. I suspect that soon I will be joined to the hip with a mobility vehicle, as so many others in my RetCom are.
You may, if you’ve reached this point, have lost all hope of ever again accomplishing anything of note. How can you, when you don’t know how much time is left? A few months ago I fell into that trap. I was thinking that when I get to a certain age I will move to Oregon where I can end my life legally. But, then I thought, no. This is the way it is supposed to be. This is where we all will eventually be, if we a fortunate enough to live long enough.
But, this fateful type of thinking gets us no where. With that in mind, my future goal in life is to do what I can each day. Don’t worry about the end, it eventually comes to everyone, whether you like it or not. Just spend each day as fruitfully as you possibly can (I’m not so old that I have forgotten Simon and Garfunkel’s advice)
AND DISREGARD THE REST.🙃🥴😁😎
RJ's Corner - Having My Say 
You have just a few years on me – I’m 77, but I have every intention to out do my father who lived to be 90. There’s a reasonable chance that I’ll make it as my mother lived to 96, and she has a brother who is 98 and a sister who recently turned 100. She also had 2 brothers who lived into their 90s and a grandfather who died at 96. On my father’s side, he has a brother who is 99 and a sister who lived to 104 and several other siblings who survived into their mid 90s. So in theory I have the genes for longevity. But who knows? Fate is fickle. Whatever, I intend to make the most of what’s left of my life, not as others might want but the way I want. May your days be fruitful as they possibly can.
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Thanks for your story, Barry. No one in my family for at least the last three generations has made it through their 80th year. So, we are looking from different viewpoints. Isn’t life interesting, even as we approach the end of it. As long as I can stay relatively healthy and mobile, I too would kinda like to live another decade or so 😎
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My DH turned 80 last week. It is definitely a different milestone than previous ones, as you note. The NYT ran an oped this weekend asking people what 80 was like, and we both agreed that Art Garfunkel nailed it:
“The body sets limits, and you’re obliged to accept them.”
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I think there is a copy of NYT in the mailroom downstairs, I will have to look at that article. I think one of the saddest things for me about being deaf for forty years, is that all I can do now is read the lyrics of several of my favorite folk singers. But that is not a way my “savage beast” is soothed.
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