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March 4, 2010

Getting older has its advantages

Ron Booth

I turned 34 Wednesday and still feel 33. I have yet to have that birthday where great wisdom is bestowed upon me. I also haven’t had that birthday where the wheels have fallen off, that has happened over time.

I’ve been told by several people that 40, 45 and 50 are the birthdays when everything heads downhill, and I’ve got a while to think about the first one of those birthdays.

I’m not a particular believer in a birthday dictating when you start feeling old. I look at birthdays as a point of reflection. A lot of people say they used to do something when they were a certain age. Over time, we mature and lose the ability to do certain things, but we gain the ability to do other things better.

Believe it or not, I make better decisions now than I did when I was 21. I’m pretty sure I made better decisions when I was 8 then when I was 21, though. For instance when I was 8 I wouldn’t have “surfed” on the cab of a pickup truck, nor would I do it at 34. At 21, that seemed like a pretty good idea.

There is a stage in a man’s life, or at least there was in my life, that you think your bulletproof. That seems to be the ages between 16 and 24. Between those two ages, I made some of my poorest decisions. Of course, I got married around the age of 24. And since then I’ve had three children. That helps to hone the decision making process. OK, in all honesty, Kayce is the decision maker in the family, and about 70 to 90 percent of the time I just go along with what she says and thinks.

Of course with age comes the increasing back and joint pain, most of which is more than likely the result of the poor decisions that were made between the ages of 16 and 24.

Not only do you start making better decisions and creaking as life goes along, you also start to notice that things cycle.

For instance, when your under the age of 5, your food costs less, then it does when you become an adult. When you reach the golden age of 65, your food starts to become cheaper.

Going to the movies is the same way. Cheaper when your younger and older, but they make up the difference in between.

Another of the glorious things that happens is that you can start a conversation just by saying “Honey, look at this. Does this look weird?”

What follows is usually something getting picked at or prodded in some form or fashion. None of it being any fun. Sometimes, it results into an appointment being made at doctor’s office on your behalf. Then you get to answer the same questions that you already answered for your significant other.

There are a list of complaints that can be made about getting older, but the upside is at least your around to get older.



— Ron Booth is the managing editor for The Duncan Banner. He can be reached at 580-255-5354, Ext. 166, or via e-mail at ron.booth@duncanbanner.com.

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