An underappreciated quality of youth.....stamina!

Getting ready for retirement, last May.
As I rapidly approach my 60th birthday and my mother has recently celebrated her 80th, I realize that I am losing a quality that I really didn't appreciate as much as I should when I had it at 100%, and that is stamina. During my working years right after college, I seemed to be able to do it all.

I could work full-time, drive from Denton to Fort Worth for my job, help out with my husband's job as a high school marching band director (teaching the color guard), have three children and raise them with energy to spare, go to the grocery store, etc., etc. I had boundless exuberance for all kinds of things.
Three generations of our ladies.

Do you ever feel like you have lost a step or two? It's probably very common - my Mom said that she
notices it more about every 10 years of her life. Just a bit less ability, or feeling a bit slower. She is doing very well at 80, but I think she is unusually perky for her age. (I know several 80+ year olds who are doing very well on the stamina front, however.)

Some people are not as fortunate. As I heard someone say the other day, do what you want to do now, because time is marching on. You just never know.

I am very acutely aware that none of us know how long we have to do what we want to in life. (That is possibly the understatement of the century.) Many of us are feeling the rush of time at this point. What got me thinking about it was the notion that I had retired "at a young age." I have since come to realize how much I still want to accomplish, and how much I really want to get it underway.

I am fighting the "I've got plenty of time for that" mindset. I did want to spend some time resting after retirement, but now I feel that it is getting more and more important to get some work done too.

I want to draw, paint, do some hand lettering, write (especially for children), illustrate, travel, spend time with grandkids, spend time with family (both together and individually), see friends when I can, exercise every day, and also do some things that I've never had time for before - like work on family history for our entire family tree, learn to cook better with the help of Food Network, bake some delicious things that my grandchildren will enjoy and remember me for, and also organize my life even better...I mean, the list really goes on and on as you can see!

Meanwhile, I have been writing letters of recommendation for former students, and even done a few phone interviews for professional positions that my former students are candidates for - jobs that would potentially open some doors for them professionally.

I love my life, but I find it changing a lot in the time since I have retired. I am spending more time on social media than ever before, keeping up with older people that I know and maintaining contact with some of my former students as they go through college, start or continue with their families and jobs.

People are really interesting when they don't know anything about you online. They can be extra nice or incredibly presumptive. I find that some seem to use social media as a dumping ground for foul thoughts. It can also be a very positive way for people to stay connected, but it is very important to understand that it can be a negative place as well. Maturity helps one to deal with it all.

That is a topic for another day. Perhaps tomorrow!

Cheers, and happy 2018! A year with improved stamina for us all. 😉

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