There is a lot of chatter about numbers. Heck. People even write songs about numbers.
“One is the loneliest number”
“Eight days a week”
“Love me two times”
“19th Nervous Breakdown”
I am a numbers gal. I’ve always had a thing about them. My favorite number is 7. I think because I am the seventh born in our family. I always wore #7 or some variation, throughout all my years as a fervent jock.
Thirteen used to scare the willies right into me. I wouldn’t carry 13 dollars in my billfold or 13 cents in my pocket. And I really could not stand Friday the 13th. Then, our dear dog Frances had 13 puppies. So I turned that frown, upside down. And from that point on, I was okay to be around 13.
But then my Dad died on the 13th. In the year 2013. So.
The thing about numbers is they are conjured. By humans. They are all just something we made up… a long, long time ago. Numbers aren’t like water, or trees, or even nose hairs. Those things all got on this planet on their very own.
But numbers are something we created. So really, they are just… weird innovations. Things we made up, to keep track of other things.
Which brings me to an article I read today. The title was “This Is the Age When You Become OLD.” The gist of the article explains that different “generations” have divergent ideas about what age is officially old.
Here is the breakdown. Millennials ( born between 1981–1997) think that “old” is 59 years of age. Uh Oh.
Generations X (1965-1976) think 65 is crusty. Baby Boomers, such as myself (1946-1964) believe that 73 is when the distinction of being old begins. And it falls at the exact same number for the silent generation (aka Traditionalists) (born 1945 and before)
Granted, this was all based on an extensive study conducted by and according to the 2017 U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth & Worth report. I imagine this cost money to come up with such a thing.
I’ve always said that age is just a number. And we all know what numbers are. I am the youngest child in our family, and most of my friends are a bit older than I. So the “age thing” as always been of little interest to me.
Until lately. I tell you, the past year or so, the wheels seem like they keep falling off the cart Or at the very least… they are getting squeaky. You know… if I were a skier, I would be going downhill fast. But since I am an old photographer… I have a lot of flashbacks.
Regardless, I am glad to be an artist. Old artists never die. They just put things in perspective.
Okay, enough already. Age truly is just a number. The true measure for any of us is not the wrinkles on our faces, but the song in our hearts. Never stop listening to the rhythm of that beat.
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“Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.”
― C.S. Lewis
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“I am not young enough to know everything.”
― Oscar Wilde
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“Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been.”
― Mark Twain
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