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Age, I decided, is a gift.
>
>
> I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always
> wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body, the wrinkles,
> the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am taken aback by that old
> person that lives in my mirror, but I don't agonize over those things for long.
>
>
> I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for
> less gray hair or a flatter be lly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to
> myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend.
>
> I don't chide myself for eating that extra c ookie, or for not making my bed,
> or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante
> garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be e xtravagant.
>
>
>
>
> I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they
> understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
>
>
> Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and
> sleep until &nbs p;noon?
>
>
>
>
>
> I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60&70's, and if I, at
> the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.
>
>
> I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and
> will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying
> glances from the jet set .
> They, too, will get old.
>
> I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as
> well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
>
> Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break
> when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's
> beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength
> and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and
> sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
>
> I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to
> have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So
> many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn
> silver.
>
> As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other
> people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right
> to be wrong.
>
> So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like
> the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am
> still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying
> about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like
> it)
>
>
> MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE
> HEART!
> MAY YOU ALWAYS HAVE A RAINBOW OF SMILES ON YOUR FACE AND IN YOUR HEART FOREVER
> AND EVER!
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