Stories that don't fit. Endings that do!
Stories that don't fit. Endings that do!
by Frank Schiffman
When I look in the mirror these days, I think to myself, “Not so bad for a 67 year old guy.” I’m convinced that I look like I’m in my 40s. More importantly, I fell like I’m in my 30s.
Occasionally I run across a photo of myself from back in the 1980s and when I show it to younger people in my office, they often say, “Who’s that?” “Who’s that?”, I reply with a hint of indignation, “It’s me.” I mean come on, how much could I have changed. Sure, I had much more hair then and it was thick and dark. I sported a mustache, but overall could I have changed that much?
When I meet with contemporaries that I haven’t seen for years, I’m amazed at how they’ve aged. It’s not until I see a cell phone picture of the whole crew that I come to grips with the fact that I fit right in with them. But how can my mirror’s reflection deceive me?
I’ve expressed angst of this to friends and learned that my way of thinking is not unique. Baby boomers like me are very much afflicted with this self-induced delusion. In simple terms, the way we see ourselves does not equate with how we “perceive” of ourselves. And, this reality is its own blessing. I have come to believe that the very perception of our own vigor and vitality helps to ward off their decline.
The other day I stopped by to visit with my in-laws. My father-in-law who is 84 years old greeted me at the door wearing wrist weights. When I asked if he had ridden his Nautilus stationery bike yet (a daily ritual), he said, “Not yet, I have to finish doing my arm exercises.” He doesn’t look or act his age.
Aging is a reality from which there is no escape. Maintaining a positive attitude is perhaps the most important practice as we age. I have one neighbor in his 30s who occasionally relates stories to me in which he says, “The guy I was talking with is really old, I mean in his 60s!” I’m 67, and as I laugh inside, I know that because I have a positive and vibrant personality, he sees me as being much younger than I am.
Remember this, it’s the whole package; especially your attitude, that keeps you young, not just the way you look.