The Faces and Feelings of Aging

What is aging, really?

I find myself asking this question more frequently, peeling back the layers with further questions such as what it looks like and what I would like my life to resemble at 70 years of age if I am fortunate enough to live that long. My non-biological older brother is turning 40 in less than a month. We tell each other how we are growing into our prime years. When we were turning 18 or 21, we also saw those as prime years. 40 was old then. It's almost as if we push back what's old each year we're alive. So, mentally, do we separate aging from getting old? Is aging thought of as a look and old a feeling? Statements such as "You look as if you haven't aged since I saw you" or "I feel old."

There's this guy at the gym I go to 70-plus years old, still pretty jacked. His age only shows through the gray hair and the fact he always has elbow and knee pads on during his workout. There is still an admiration for how he made it to his age, and he can still work out consistently and build strength. At the rehab facility my father was in, there was a guy there in his 50s. I don't know much of his story or how he landed there; however, I noticed the foods I've seen him eat and his current condition. He once asked me if I would go to the store for him. I quickly said sure, what do you need. He replied something I shouldn't have, and then I promptly declined to go. I'd like to know his thoughts about aging or if he felt old. Due to his sudden passing, while my father was in the hospital, I would never get the opportunity to ask him. This guy was a father, husband, and brother to people I've seen visit or talk with him. I am confident they would have enjoyed more time, especially with the healthier version of him. It would have been presumptive to say that his diet was the cause of this. I know that it didn't help.

If you feel old, click here