When I turned 34 earlier this year, I told a colleague that I didn’t want to turn 40. I half expected her to respond with the usual “Oh, being in your forties is not bad at all. In fact, nowadays forty is like the new thirty,” just to make me feel a little better about getting older. Instead she recounted a story about a woman who had lost her son and said “He will never get the chance to turn 40.”
It was that response that literally made me stop wishing I would never get older. Age may only be a number, but to many people, that number conjures up feelings of regret, yearning, nostalgia, or a desire to turn back the clock and redo life all over again. How many of us have said something like ”I wish I had studied business in college instead of art history” or “If I could be 22 again, I would immediately start investing in the stock market”? Many people don’t want to face the possibility that we are behind in our retirement savings or even the reality that their estate planning is inadequate.
We must realize that, even though the past may have left an indelible mark on our lives, the past is something we simply cannot change. We can learn from it as we try to build a life that we hope one day will lead to a prosperous future. So instead of brooding over the fact that you haven’t saved a dime for old age, why not just start now? Instead of wishing you had taken a different career path or followed your bliss when you were in your twenties, how about developing a plan to incorporate your passion in your current life? Instead of denying your mortality, imagine your family’s livelihood without your presence. Will it prompt you to obtain the proper insurances and estate planning documents?
When I compare my 20s with my 30s, I am amazed by how much more colorful my life is now. The successes and heartaches, the friends and former lovers, the various careers, the places I’ve lived, and even the additional wrinkles on my face– all of these have made a significant contribution to who I am now. No longer a victim of my past nor a coward about the future, I am embracing my age… and the art of aging.
Isaias Sarmiento
© 2010
