Ramblings on Middle Age

I was just glancing at headlines online when I saw one reading "Middle-aged Mom Triumphs." Apparently a middle-aged mom qualified for the US Olympic Swimming Team. I normally don't read sports news, but I had to click this headline immediately. I had to know: When is middle-aged?

According to Yahoo! Sports, 41. Crisis averted. I'm not there...yet.

So in this age of medical advances and technology, we only expect an Olympic athlete to make it to 82? I thought we were all planning on living to at least 100, hence the likelihood of Social Security and 401Ks not being enough to support us into our twilight years. Heck, if we're only living to 80 what's all the fuss? Maybe we can keep eating junk food and bring that down to 75. Even better. But I digress.

41 is middle-aged. This leaves me fewer than ten years before I begin my downward spiral into dementia and Depends. Less than ten years to do all the things I need to do while I'm "young" (and there's a relative term to be sure). I almost feel like I shouldn't even do anything at this point. No sense traveling the world now. I have to save something to do in my impending retirement.

All that talk about 40 being the new 30 had me excited; made me feel like I was perhaps living in the new 20. And to be able to redo my 20s...well, that's almost too much to dream, isn't it? Alas, I'm in my current 30s and in less than ten I'll not only be over the hill, but pickin' up speed on the way down. Of course, does that put me on top of the hill now?

I don't think so. I think I'm still climbing the other side. I think we have this roller coaster life. We push and push up the hill, click-click-click, and just when we realize we're hitting the apex, the highpoint, the vista, the pinnacle, we go careening down out of control faster than we ever imagined. And just as we catch our breath and come to terms with the twists and turns, maybe even starting to enjoy ourselves, we come to an abrupt stop and are told to get out. It's over. Let someone else ride.

It's enough to make to make you sigh.

No, I won't sigh. I'm bound and determined to live to 150. I have several more years until middle age. Whew. Problem solved.