"As I've Aged"

Ladies,

Several of you asked for a copy of the poem that Pat Bristow had scrapbooked (rather elegantly, I must say!) into the white frame we have had  on display in the store.  Pat abbreviated it a bit for her purposes, but here is a copy of the entire writing.

Thanx,
Bev

As

I've aged, I've

become kinder to myself, and

less critical of

myself. I've become my own friend.

I have seen too

many dear friends leave this world too

soon;

before they understood

the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if

I choose to read or play on the

computer until 4

AM or sleep until noon? I will dance

with

myself to those wonderful tunes of the

60s &

70's, and if I, at the same time, wish

to weep over a lost love

..

I will.

I

will walk the beach

in a swimsuit that is

stretched over a

bulging body, and will dive

into the waves with

abandon if I choose to,

despite the pitying

glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old. I

know I am sometimes

forgetful. But there

again, some of life

is just as well

forgotten. And I

eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not

break when you lose a loved one, or

when a

child suffers, or even when somebody's

beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts

are what give us strength and

understanding and compassion.

A heart never broken is

pristine and sterile

and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I

am so blessed to have

lived long enough to have

my hair turn gray,

and to have my youthful

laughs be forever

etched into deep grooves on my face.

So

many have never

laughed, and so many have died

before their hair

could turn silver.

As

you get older, it is

easier to be

positive. You care

less about what other

people think. I don't

question myself

anymore. I've even

earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your

question, I like being old. It has set me free.

I like the person I have

become. I am not

going to live forever, but while I am

still

here, I will not waste time lamenting

what could

have been, or worrying about what will

be.

And I shall eat dessert

every single day  (if I feel like it).