Keep Growing
Sometimes Darrel and I will look at each other and ask, “When did we get this old?” and break out into a fit of laughter. We claim our current season snuck-up on us. We didn’t see it coming nor, did we actively participate in it. Darrel tries to slow his aging down. He gets upset each year because his birthday is in January. He says that he gets older at the very beginning of the year before everyone else and it’s not fair that the rest of us get more time. (I declare that cracks me up every time he says it!) I had the opposite going on. Not sure how I lost count of my years, but I did. I went 6 months saying I was a year older than I was. It wasn’t noticed until one day I was talking to my cousin Garland and he says, “You aren’t that old. We are the same age!”
Darrel and I think of ourselves as being young at heart with no plans of slowing down, even though we are often rudely reminded that we must operate at a slower pace. At times, our bodies insist on carrying on in ways that we don’t approve of, nor did we give our permission. It is these actions that can bring on a round of rambunctious laughter in our house. Whenever our bones snap, crackle, and pop, sounding like a one-person band, we look at each other and just can’t contain ourselves. When it takes the other several tries to get up out of a seated position, we laugh and lend a helping hand. We remind each other to hold onto the banister when going up and down the stairs and to slow down when moving too fast. We are growing older together and have learned to read each other’s signals. Darrel can judge by my stride or the bend of my body just how many milligrams of pain relievers it will take to get me back on track. I know from the way he puts his hand on his lower back to crank the heating pad up to high. After shoveling snow or extensive gardening, I also know to give him a complete day of rest and relaxation to recover.
We are both fortunate to be active and healthy. We do not take this for granted. We may laugh at our current ‘growing’ pains but, we are also quick to seek out medical professionals and not self-diagnose. Lately, my hips decided it would be cute to sound like baby frogs croaking every time I’d do a knee lift. I visited my doctor and told him I felt like the Tin Man and he would have to do something. To my relief, X-rays revealed nothing too serious. Sessions with a physical therapist to increase my range of motion were called for. This week’s physical therapy was like a day at the spa. My session with Erin ended with her spending a considerable amount of time pulling on my foot and stretching my leg to open my hip area. It was the absolutely strangest and most wonderful sensation, think of being gently stretched on a medieval rack. I left feeling two inches taller and still laughing at Erin telling me now I’d be able to spike the ball at my volleyball game. (Super shout out to Erin Mitchell, PT, DPT, CMTPT, AIB-VR, Clinic Director, at Pivot PT on Foulk Rd!)
To me, Darrel overdoes it working around the house and in the yard. I’m always on him to slow down. To which he says, “Honey, I’ve got this!” He won’t call the grandkids to help but prefers to do the lifting, wood chopping, shoveling, and yard work himself. Darrel said he goes through the normal aches and pains but thank God nothing more than that. He says he did have an eye-opening experience recently. In his mind, he feels like he can work like a 25-year-old but, one day while working in the yard, he had reached his limit. He says he just couldn’t do anymore, had no more to give, and had to sit. Darrel says he never experienced that before. While working, his stamina just wasn’t what it used to be. At age 71, he had to acknowledge to himself that time had caught up with him.
Life has always been unpredictable and none of us ever knows what is waiting to greet us each day. There are also changes in life that remain constant if you, to quote my momma, “just keep living.” As I travel this road of growing older, I am learning to take on the changes that come with it graciously. As I grow, I will continue to challenge myself but, I’ll also be kinder to myself and work around limitations as they present themselves. I will surround myself with others who are also growing in my direction (my Tribe.) This results in more rewarding and positive experiences. As I grow, I will ask for help when needed and give help more readily. I will stay connected to family and friends. I will have fun, go on adventures, learn new things and stay playful. I will laugh loud, long, and hard as it is a natural healer that feels good and eases pain.
There is a line in the song “7 Years” that says “Remember life and then your life becomes a better one.” I believe by choosing to live my very best life each day, my older self of tomorrow will be grateful.
Amanda
Photo by David Bartus from Pexels
