About That Time of Year

 Around the end of June and the first of July I am thinking about getting another year older, but not in a good way like a kid anticipating being a teenager at 13.  I used to think of 73 as being old.  Now I look at obits of celebrities and want to know how old they were when they died.  Anyone dying under 70 is too young to die and now 90 or older seems about right.  But I don't think about death and dying but more about my body at 73.  Particularly my mind.  I'm not as sharp as I used to be, but both my wife and I are still blessed with pretty good minds.

We have a story of steps in this house we have to go up and down, but I do more of that than my wife does.  Doing laundry for example, requires several trips.  And then I go to the garage several times a day.  There are stairs off the deck that I'll go up and down several times in a week or so.  Then there are several trips up and down to carry in groceries.  

But is 73 getting up there?  In a way it is and this is about the time of year I begin thinking I'll be another year older.  My wife likes celebrations and I'm just the opposite.  I'd like my birthday to pass like a kidney stone.  Well, sort of.  My mom never wanted anyone to know her age and I really don't care if anyone knows how old I am.  I might worry about it if I think my heart attack took ten years off my life.  But all that did was make me more conscious about my health.  

But worrying about it can take years away from one.  If I think 73 is still quite young, then in fact I'm not an old man.  If there are things I'd still like to do, then I'm not old.  I can think of a few things.  But much of it is pretty sedate.  But I've decided I hate Pickleball having never played it.  I'm somewhat limited by my heart condition, but still, I am far from finished.  I can't go scuba diving, for example, but snorkeling would be okay if I don't go deep into the water.  I'm not really worried about another heart attack, but another one could end my life.  

It won't matter where I am in relationship to medical intervention, because then it won't matter.  My heart is functioning at around 50%.  But what I do have left seems to get stronger and not the other way around. But it might be kind of cool to say I'm 73.  Not a lot of people born in 1951 made it this far.  I'm not an antique, but a classic.  So, I'll think of myself that way.  Today's best cars come from that period.  But parts are hard to come by.  Some look okay, but just don't examine under the hood or look too closely.  

But I'll take my 73 over many my age.  I'm far from being a beater.  If I shaved my beard, I'd probably look ten years younger.  The beard adds character.  I probably look like I could have been a professor.  But the more I think about being 73, the less I think it's old.  I'm a well-maintained classic.  I'll go with that.  My pipe this morning is my Peterson System pipe with some Lane 1-Q.  My coffee this morning is Stumptown Holler Mountain.  Thank you for your time and Peace to each one of you.

Dave