Benefits We Can Enjoy As We Get Older
"Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!" - Ingrid Bergman
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Age is a funny thing. When we were young, we couldn't wait to reach that just-out-of-reach adulthood. We dreamed of all the freedom we would have. All the things we would now be able to do. We had all sorts of grand ideas of what adulthood would be like. And soon enough, we graduated high school and went on to bigger and maybe better things. And probably a few of us were at some point a bit disappointed that adulthood was exactly all we thought it would be. It certainly wasn't as easy as we thought it be.
Adulthood gave us jobs, marriage, and a family—all good things. Most of us probably remember that time as the best years of our lives.
Middle age rolls around, and before you know it, we are thinking of how we will soon be empty nesters, and after that, we will be looking forward to retirement. And then many of us start thinking about how we wouldn't mind returning to those good old days when we were younger. When we were young, we wanted to be older; now that we are older, we miss those youthful days. When it comes to age, we can't seem to make up our minds about what age we want to be.
Well, as we all know, we can't go back in time. But what we can do is give some thought to the benefits of our age now. Yes, there are benefits. Just as there are benefits to being young, we older folks have some benefits to look forward to.
For the most part, I have enjoyed each stage of my life. And I intend to make the most of the last stage of my life. But we must consider that we ultimately are in charge of our happiness. It's up to us. Let's go!
Benefits Of Getting Old
Many of us no longer sweat the small stuff. We have a better understanding of what is truly important. We know that worrying does nothing but stress us out. And we now realize that most little things we worry about never happen.
We don't lack things to talk about. We have years and years of things to talk about. The stories we can tell. But of course, there is a good chance we will tell our stories repeatedly.
We are happier. We have reached a time when we can better handle life's ups and downs. We are satisfied with ourselves.
We don't worry so much about what other people think of us. We are comfortable with who we are now.
We have more free time. Now is the time to do those things we wanted but didn't have the time. Read, garden, write a book, take up photography, or travel. The sky is the limit. The possibilities are endless. Many people have found great success in new careers in their older years.
Grandchildren are maybe even better than children. Grandparents get all the fun and very little of the work involved. Grandparents and their grandchildren create incredible bonds. It's a fantastic time in the life of the grandparent and the grandchild. Memories are made that will last a lifetime.
We can have the fun of crossing things off our bucket lists. Of course, we have first to make our bucket list. Make a fun list, but maybe add a little crazy to the bucket list. And then get going on crossing things off of it. Have fun!
Time for new hobbies. Hobbies are not only a way to have fun but also a way to keep our minds sharp and a way to relieve stress. Maybe you like golf or yoga, how about taking a cooking class, or perhaps writing is your thing?
We have learned that there is more to life than a 9-5 job. A whole new world has opened up to us.
Retirement has arrived, and we can finally kick back and relax a bit. We can sleep in the morning if we want and stay up late if we wish to.
We feel that we can now dress how we want, which means dressing for comfort. Of course we still want to look nice, but comfort has its rewards.
We know what our priorities are. One paramount focus is ourselves. As you get older, your health becomes one of your major priorities. We value our friendships. We take fewer risks and prefer to spend our time on those things that truly matter to us.
When we were small children, we used to say:
I don't want to
I don't have to
You can't make me
Today we can get away with saying those things.
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