Man's Bittersweet Story About What It Feels Like To Grow Old Is A Feels Trip

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mattstaff
Nov 28, 2018 2:00 PM EST

Time's this crazy thing that seems to pass faster every year we're on this wild planet. Ninjas in here cutting onions in here, man...

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  • 01
    Text - Joe Parsons, studied at Brown University Answered Apr 10, 2017 Author has 1.2k answers and 1.5m answer views I turned 72 last month, so I suppose I'm qualified to answer this question. I think the first feeling is one o...surprise. When we're in our teens, we can't wait to be adult so we can drive, buy booze, buy a house, get married-- have all the freedom adults have
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  • 02
    Text - Wait, what? I could've sworn I was going to have a ton of freedom once I got to be an adult. As it turned out, I spent a lot of energy and attention in other areas: learning how to be a husband, then a dad. I had to figure out what I wanted to do and be when I grew up. That was a process of trial and error, and even after I finally found a career I wanted to stick with, it still feels as though I'm playing the whole thing by ear sometimes-fake it 'till you make it. So here I am at the tai
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  • 03
    Text - I feel the same now at this age that I always have... mostly. Occasionally, I'll see myself in a photo and think, "Who's that old dude?" Oh. I wonder if it's just a trick of the light or the camera angle, but know it's just a photo of a septuagenarian-me. Surprise I've always been healthy. There have even been long periods when I had no health insurance. That means I've always been lucky, too. Five years ago, at age 67, I had an interesting experience: the right side of my body wasn't beh
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  • 04
    Text - I called my HMO. They asked me some questions- and keep in mind, I felt fine-and they told me to have someone drive me to emergency immediately. I told them l'd just drive myself, but they said that was not an option. So I called a friend who lived nearby. She drove me to emergency, where they hooked me up to an IV and a lot of machines. As it turned out, I was having what they called a "minor stroke." Technically, it was a Temporal Ischemic Attack, which sounds a lot more serious. It was
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  • 05
    Text - Fortunately, I got treatment in time, and have no permanent impairment. Quite the contrary: it was a life-enhancing experience. I came to the realization-probably for the first time in my life that I am not invincible. I resolved to take my health seriously. I went back to the week and began running four days a week. I lost about 30 pounds and got my blood pressure and cholesterol under control. Most importantly, twice gym а though, I established my new running habit, which has enhanced m
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  • 06
    Text - When people around your own age get sick from various maladies connected with getting older, little by little, you start to feel that reality. A dear friend of mine, twenty years younger than I, died unexpectedly from the diabetes she'd had (and managed successfully) since childhood. Another friend, twelve years older than I, is in hospice, comfortable but fading. We've had a close and rewarding friendship for almost three decades. As I watch him peacefully preparing for the inevitability
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  • 07
    Text - Still, I am increasingly aware of the things I once thought I'd do at some point, but now know there simply isn't enough time. It's a sobering thought, but when I look back at all the wonderful aspects of the life I've been able to lead-a wife who's been steadfast for nearly half a century, grandchildren who think Papa's the coolest person on the planet, and daughters who grudgingly acknowledge that I've gotten smarter-I realize it's been a pretty sweet ride.
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