This Season of life - More of the Challenges of being 70

 No matter how I look at the numbers I can't help but find myself in the winter of my life. This season has presented very few personal challenges to me but it certainly has made them apparent to those with whom I accompany.  I have moved beyond hospital visits to my parents' and grandparents' generations and the decline of the elderly is now looking me square in the face. Just this year, I have watched two dear friends suffer the effects of cancer and now a stroke.  I have to say that now following my first visit to see the stroke victim, if given a choice, I would opt for cancer, organ removal and chemo therapy.  I know that neither is optimal but nausea and exhaustion would win out over being keenly aware that you are no longer making sense.

As we age, the experience of being placed in Rehab appears to be the great equalizer.  All of us who have prided ourselves on regular hair cuts, daily makeup regimens and exercise to keep us "healthy" are in for a terrible shock. Given the state of our medical system, it is very likely that we will once again be relegated to the space of our college dorm room during rehab. Your friends will struggle to recognize the new longer hair length you're sporting or the freckles that have always lay hidden beneath a thin coat of ivory beige foundation. But the greater challenge is simply caring on a conversation about the simplest of things.  

So, what is all this preparation for the golden years about?  Everywhere we are told to take vitamins and supplements, stay fit, challenge yourself with puzzles to keep your brain alert.  And then somewhere along the line, you are blindsided with disease and disorder of a serious magnitude.  The stroke is especially debilitating.  It can take out an entire side of your body, your voice and any coherent thought you may ever again have.  It is like the insides of your brain have been broken into pieces and it is now up to you and your therapy team to put the puzzle back together again, one piece at a time.  

My recent changed mantra of "It doesn't matter" may take on a more pleasant, "Let's have dessert." If the end is uncertain and we never know when the unforeseen may take us down, let's find ways to enjoy this moment that we do have and all that it holds.  Let's take the time to be with our friends and family for as long as possible. Let's linger together for just a bit longer.