As senior citizens, we cannot help wondering about life’s hourglasses. When will the last grain of sand drop? Living life to the fullest allows multiple opportunities to squeeze every ounce of happiness into our last chapter. Illnesses or age-related inconveniences may prevent us from doing some things we love. But if we work to keep our minds sharp and our bodies as healthy as possible, we can have a great life. Time is too precious to waste, so we are constantly finding new areas of interest. Physical activity levels may have decreased, and we may miss old friends we can no longer keep up with, but our longevity always allows other choices and options. TV is not our only choice; it is home confinement at it is worse. Have you tried chair volleyball? You sit, you hit a ball, and you laugh, and laughter is what keeps us young! So, you can’t cut a rug on the dance floor anymore, but you can still enjoy listening to the music, watching people dance and “chair dance” to the beat of the music. The dances start at 6pm so you do not have to stay up past your bedtime! No one is ever too old for date-night even if dinner is the early bird special. Aging is the process of downsizing our lives from the things we were able to do, to what we can do now, and making the most out of it. Refuse to let joy escape our lives. Life is not over until it is over.
Everyone needs a reason to get up in the morning. Whether it is for a hobby, a charity or to have fun. As parents of grown children, we find they do not need our advice, help, or support. We also find our families have busy lives. Our calls and visits become less frequent, and unfortunately, they do not have the time for us. As Mom’s and Dad’s and Grandparents, we find we still have a full tank of emotion, love, and support, but no place to invest those emotions. So, what do we do?
We volunteer or we start new traditions and open our hearts to new friendships. They become our new “family” away from family. We value the quality of friendships rather than quantity. At our age we surround ourselves with sincere, loving people. We may spend our last days with, care for, rely on, and become substitute families for each other. These are the friends we call when we need help. We celebrate holidays, birthdays, pray for each other when ill, celebrate recoveries and laugh at our mutual aches and pains. These friendships are the unexpected gifts of our Senior years, and we love and depend on each other as our support system. We have a commonality including abbreviated expiration dates. The new friendships in our Senior years are Blessings we cherish every day and mean the world to us as we age.
