As I Grow Old

As I grow old I want to have a face etched with the experiences of my youth, my young adult years, my middle age and my old age. I want my face to reflect all the places I’ve been, all the things I’ve done, all the people I’ve known, all the smiles and tears of a lifetime. I don’t want to plump my face with botox and erase all the evidence of living. As if I’ve lived in an eternal state of youth, not having known the joys and sorrows of adulthood and the wisdom of age. I want my hands to reflect the diapers I’ve changed and the cookies I’ve baked and the laundry I’ve done. The hands I’ve held in love and the hands that have reached out to others. Age is not the end of life, it is the fulfillment of life. And all the signs of aging, some of which are not pleasant, are there to remind me of the life I’ve lived and the people I’ve loved. I want people to know that I’m 76. I don’t want them to exclaim, “How young you look!” I want them to notice the lines and see that I’m still living my life to the fullest. I want my history reflected in my face. Grow old with me! The best is yet to be, The last of life, for which the first was made: Our times are in his hand Who sayeth "a whole I plant, Youth shows but half; Trust God; see all nor be afraid." Robert Browning