Forever Young
A few weeks ago, my roommate Marissa and I were about to walk into Dunkin’ to satisfy our morning coffee fix (medium caramel latte with skim, to be exact). Before we walked through the doors to the Taj Mahal of all coffee shops, a little old man with a cane and a heavy limp was just leaving. Marissa was walking a little ahead of me, and the man looked at her and said: “Never get old! Being old is the worst.” She kept walking, and looked back at me with a confused expression. I hadn’t heard what he said to her, until I walked past him and he said “I was just telling her, never get old! Everything gets so much harder.” As we entered, I thought about what this man said to us, and I told Marissa that I thought it was depressing. Everyone fears getting old. Heck, I was freaking out on my 20th birthday. But guess what? It’s inevitable. That’s why it’s so important to live in the moment, to make everyday count. And we all know this, too. Every so often, we’ll read a quote or watch a t.v. show that reminds us to life live to the fullest. But, then we forget about it. It’s only when something severe happens that we remember to really live the life we love. It made me sad to think that this man had such a pessimistic attitude. I guess no one ever told him that staying positive, appreciating simple things, and not intimidating two 20 year old girls was a good way to be young at heart… not to mention, optimism can help you avoid wrinkles. Sure, he was old. But in 60 years, I’ll be that old too. I think at that point, I’ll remember how fun it was to be young and it’ll remind me to be young at heart. And hopefully I’ll be a cool grandma. One who knits blankets and carries around a Vera Bradley cane ;-)
