Another Day, Another Ache

 Today, I ordered some arnica gel for my aches and pains. While I was at it, I thought of ordering this t-shirt but, nah. I resent that it's a young chick modeling it!

Young body & young skin. So I cropped off her head!

The good thing is, I wasn't upset in the least about having to order the arnica gel. I just hope it works as well (or at all!) as the reviewers claim. 

What prompted me to even think about getting the arnica is funny. I walked around the apartment for a couple of weeks seriously thinking I had a flu bug. Turns out, my body aches (apparently) because that is what aged bodies are best at... 

My little brother and his wife were over the other day for dinner. I made the mistake of sitting on the floor afterward as we talked and had coffee. My brother had to help me when I was ready to stand up again. (He's not laughing though because he's right behind me on the age train!)

So, yah, I'm gonna give the arnica a try. The Tylenol isn't working. The Ibuprofen works really well but I'm not supposed to take that - so, of course, it's the one that works.

Shout out to Tracie for the truth!

I can remember being young and spry. I really just could not understand why my mother walked and moved the way she did. For a long time, I thought it was because she had bunions (which I wasn't sure was a real thing back then!). Nope. Turns out, she was just aging. Her feet didn't hurt, her entire body ached. And now I am where she was. It always startles me to remember that this is my 7th decade in this temporary existence. I just said that out loud and... Wow!

The thing about aging is how it sneaks up on you in stages. One day, you notice the lines on your face, and then you notice you can't lose 10 pounds just by cutting out bread for the weekend. Finally, the aches and pains start haunting you. Two years ago, I could still sit down on the floor, cross-legged for hours. I had only a little bit of trouble getting up. Fast forward to the other day when the family and I had a 5-minute giggling spell over my brother trying to help me up while my SIL moved furniture out of the way.

My 11-year-old great-nephew and I were having one of our regular after-school phone conversations recently when he asked how old am. I told him and he thought about it for a minute, then he asked me not to die soon. My late sister and I raised his mom, so I am sort of a Grammy to him. When she died, he was just old enough to be sad but just young enough not to fully understand exactly why.

I tried to assure him that I had no plans to die soon, "the good Lord willing". I don't know if that made my sweetie pie feel any better but I'm now prepping for our future conversations on the subject.

Meanwhile, I am happy in my "old age" and still laugh at times like a silly kid and I really do feel like a teenager sometimes. I am still awed by the beauty I see in nature. There are nights when I stare up at the stars like a child seeing them for the first time. 

When I wake up tomorrow, stiff and creaky, I am going to be thankful for another day. I have been blessed to live long enough to know what true beauty is, and what does and doesn't matter in life. I have a family who loves me and friends who do too. Whenever I do die, my nephew will know that mine has been a good life.

Peace

--Free