In the late 80s, I wrote a weekly column for senior citizens for our local paper: a "tips" column in the corner of the mid-week shopper section, published "as space provided," with the City of Fort Collins byline.
By the end of my two years of writing, my articles were centrally placed, rarely cut, and sported my byline. The paper, and the readership, liked me, and I was proud of my accomplishment.
But at the back of my mind, I had big doubts:
What does a 30-year-old know about aging?
Well, now I'm 53, and I guess you could say, I'm still a "baby senior"; I have a lot left to learn. But I know some things:
There's a whole generation of aging people out here. We're opinionated, we're independent, and many of us aren't sickly, aren't running marathons, and aren't taking world cruises. Many of us aren't even retiring yet. We're average people getting by.
We were born in upward mobility and a culture that told us we could create our own futures.
We came of age during an unwanted war and social upheaval. We were taught to speak our minds.
I'm not exactly sure where this blog will take me, maybe nowhere.
I'm simply interested in how age plays out, personally, sociologically, and spiritually, and now I'm not just writing about it, I'm "in" it.
That's just how life is.
