Aging with grace

The VOICE of Inspiration

By Don Lindsey.

One of the wonderful things about having my parents living with us is the fact that as they age, we’re here to help with some of the stuff that is harder for them to accomplish now at 86 years old. Besides that, I’m learning a lot about how to age gracefully.

For one, I’m learning that it’s not easy. At my age, I’m already feeling the basic aches and pains one gets rolling out of bed in the morning. I’m also finding that I don’t have nearly the energy that I used to have when it comes to staying active throughout the day and when I look at my mother and see how happy she is every day, I get a little embarrassed because I’m half her age and I don’t handle getting older as well as she has for the last 40 years or so.

When I think of her mother, I get a little more ashamed because that lady was the epitome of aging with grace. I can still remember warming up for a little league baseball game and looking towards the parking lot to see this little old lady, with a big straw hat and a lawn chair heading towards the baseball diamond to watch her grandson. What’s more remarkable is that a few of those times she wasn’t feeling well because she had battled skin cancer and being out in the sun was not a good thing for her but despite that, she threw on her big floppy hat and came out to watch me play anyway. When I’m looking for an example of what getting old looks like, I hope that I’m half the person that she was.

My father is an example that I try to follow as well. He’s been through a preverbal hell in the last year with his health and massive changes to his life and those he is close to and yet every day, he’s looking to keep moving forward. He has always been an example to follow as far as eating right, exercising, and staying in the best shape possible. Even with his two hospital stays this year, he’s still in better shape than I am and now that he’s starting to turn the corner from a health standpoint, he’s looking to laser spine surgery to correct his back pain so that he can get the most out of his life without hurting.

There are many other examples that I’m looking to follow the older I get, but the main thing I want to remember is that every day is a gift. If I can do that and stay in the moment, then maybe I’ll find the same success that my mother, father, and grandmother have shown me throughout my life. For me, it comes down to knowing that aging is mandatory, but as I’ve learned from the elderly people in my life, aging gracefully is a choice.

Don Lindsey is a follower of Christ, son, husband, father, and a survivor. Originally from Dayton Ohio, and resident of Apopka for six years, Don sees his life as a dedication to his wife, parents, children, and community.