Yesterday I talked a wee bit about ‘nostalgia’.  You know, the tendency we have as we grow more ‘chrono-mature’ to recall people, places & events out of our past.  Not only do we recall; but we tend to bore folks with our conversations of such as if what we’re sharing happened “yesterday”!

Well another thing that tends to come our way as we move further along the ‘chrono-scale’ into the 2nd half of the journey is discussion about our health.  I don’t mean discussions on the latest medical breakthrough or anti-aging strategy.  I mean consistent conversation around our “age” (shhh, don’t tell anyone I used that word!); the conditions from which we suffer; the medications we take & this pain or that ache or common assumption that such & such normally occurs when we’re at “our age!”

I hate it!  I mean I loathe it.  Nothing is more boring or debilitating to me mentally (and emotionally I might add) than to sit and listen to how much forgetting so & so is doing or a thorough explanation of the latest pain that requires expensive care. 

And to top it all off - the conversations always end with some comment about “what can we expect at our age”!

Well, I don’t know about you, but I expect much greater things than more medication; a new ache & pain and a social calendar that includes more physician visits than time with friends.

What happens to us as we travel the journey?  As a young mom, I used to go to the neighborhood “kaffee klatz”.  You know, where moms go to have ‘adult’ conversation!  Well, the conversation was anything but stimulating.  It almost always centered on the exploits of our young children.  When I would try to steer the conversation to a discussion of the latest books everyone was reading; the optic ‘daggers’ came out & my attempts were beat back by the neighborhood ’super moms’ (I wasn’t one of them although I was adequate - I wasn’t “super”).

So I stopped going.  I stayed home with my young ones & lamented the fact that we couldn’t get together for any other reason than to bore each other with “mom talk” or “child chatter”.

Well, it’s happening again!  With women I’ve enjoyed being with for years (since high school actually).  Intelligent women who are physically active to the point that more than one of us still “works” (you know - outside the home).  I love getting together over breakfast & sharing ‘adult’ things.

But recently, the tone of talk has changed!  More time is spent discussing how we manage all the pills we must take, or the latest health challenge one or the other is engaged in.  Gone are the discussions of world affairs; the latest great read; matters of the Spirit, etc. 

Well, it’s depressing!  At least it is for me.  First of all, (and thank God) I don’t have much to add to the conversation except to say that I’m not great at remembering to take my hypertension pill daily.  But then I wasn’t good taking any pill daily no matter my ‘chrono-maturity’ level. 

I don’t have any aches or pains to speak of (again thank God) and I don’t hang out with ’sick’ folk so I can’t share who I know who is weathering a major health crisis at the moment.

What’s really sad about the whole thing is that these are my only l-o-n-g term women friends whose company I thoroughly enjoy!  But a consistent reminder of where we are on the ‘chrono-scale’ is not my idea of “fun”.  It also is a consistent challenge to remaining convinced one is “only as old as one thinks she is!”

Will I excuse myself from future times together?  Probably not.  I’ll weather the conversation that rests simply on the surface of life & leave when it goes beyond my tolerance level. 

Then I’ll come home, take the pill I forgot before leaving, place Russell in the CD player & get busy connecting with younger folks who are beyond child bearing years (thank God they say!) and have yet to give notice that the ‘chrono-scale’ is inching onward.

And no more sliding into the seat of the car with a sigh & breathless utterance - “Oh no, not that again!”

For today, I encourage us to grab life by the b_ _ _ _ (oops!) and grasp it for all it’s worth.  Make it a day in which we wring all we can from the moments and don’t give a second thought that our clock is ticking!

Be proud of your accomplishments this day & be encouraged in all you do!

Linda, a fellow journeyer