In the last few years, I’ve noticed many of the people I grew up with are getting a little older. I hear them complaining of aches and pains and blaming it on their advanced years. Most of them are already retired, and I’ve seen them slowing down from the pace they kept in years past. That’s fine for them, but I’m still having way too much fun and have far too much to do to even consider those options. The secret is to keep up with a little preventative maintenance to keep me in good repair and going at full speed.
Some years ago, I noticed ‘they’ had begun to reduce the size of the lettering on the labels of our products in the shop, and the ink they used tended to be much blurrier than it was in my younger days. Despite buying better-resolution computer monitors, they were getting harder to read. It was steadily getting worse over time. I knew there was no way my complaints would have any effect, so the solution was to visit an optometrist to get fitted with some glasses. It worked out well.
A few years later, I noted that the local hills were getting steeper and longer than they used to be and riding my bike up them was getting tougher. An e-bike cured that in a hurry. Two years ago, I noticed that the air seemed thinner when I walked briskly for long distances. A visit to the doctor for a checkup and, soon after, a heart multiple-bypass cured that problem permanently. Last year, my neck painfully seized up, and again, the doctor recommended a little surgery to fuse three vertebrae, which took care of that problem.
In the last while, I noticed that everyone around me had started to mumble and speak much too quietly, especially in noisy situations. When I asked them to repeat themselves and speak a little louder and more distinctly, I would get that look… especially from Janis. Once again, I understood I wasn’t going to change the whole world around me. It was up to me. I visited a hearing center this morning and took the test… and yes, it was time for some hearing aids. Miraculously, in an instant, Janis (and everyone else) had learned to talk clearly and at a volume I could understand. The miracles of modern medicine and technology allow me to keep living life at its very best and at full speed. Life is good!!
