To Age Gracefully and Willingly

I've been thinking a lot about age over the past few days. One of my best friends, Rachael, turned forty last week, which has prompted lots of reflection and celebration. Rachael, Carrie, and I went to the MarQueen Hotel to celebrate, as we have all been fully vaccinated - it was the first time I had been in a hotel in over fifteen months due to the pandemic! We took a lot of pictures, although I couldn't help but reflect on how we looked old in the pictures. Not just young moms, but like seasoned moms on a middle-aged "girls" night. Which, in truth, that is what we are: seasoned moms who have been raising our kids together for the past 10+ years.

I'm not even forty yet, but Rachael's birthday (and Carrie's impending 40th birthday) have made be reflective. There is so much that one can accomplish in the first forty years of life, and it also make one wonder what is left in store. And it just so happens that this week other articles about Millenials turning forty came out, stating that it is the "old age of youth" (the term "geriatric Millenials" has gone viral over the past week or so) and that better things happen when one is in their fifties. I guess we'll see how the next decade pans out for me and my friends!

These things about aging were in the back of my mind yesterday, as I was listening to C. S. Lewis's "The Last Battle" on audiobook (read by Patrick Stewart, who did a fantastic performance). I was struck by this quote about Susan Pevensie, who at this time must be in her late teens or twenties:

“Grown-up, indeed,” said the Lady Polly, “I wish [Susan] would grow up. She wasted all her school time wanting to be the age she is now, and she’ll waste all the rest of her life trying to stay that way. Her whole idea is to race on to the silliest time of one’s life as quick as she can and then stop there as long as she can.”

This quote has made me think about what period in my life do I want to enjoy the most, and I hope that my answer will continually be "the present." I'd rather not spend time wishing that I was trying to stay at a time in my life that has already passed me by. Of course, I want to keep my body as healthy as possible, but I think that's different from trying to stop myself from aging or wish that I was a different age. I hope that I can be a person who is content about their stage in life and the things that happen to one's body with age. If I'm going to be a seasoned mom of older kids right now, then so be it.