Home

Is finding pleasure in being at home with nothing to do a sign of age? It seems as though my sons think they need to have someplace to go every night. I think I remember feeling that way. But its been a long time and truthfully, I am so pleased to have a night at home with nothing to do that those memories are really dim. Somehow I think when we get older we appreciate the simpler things in life.


Of course, I also enjoy going out and there's nothing quite as exciting as dinner and a movie. But with all the meetings I attend in the evening I've come to value some mindless hours in front of the TV or just reading a book.

Of course the only thing that could improve on the stay-at-home scenario would be a chef to feed me something absolutely delicious (but low calorie) and someone else to perhaps give me a nice massage. They say some husbands offer those services, but not mine....

Oy vey!

My father used to say that old age was not for the faint of heart. I think the same can be said of middle age! How ignorant we were before we got into our forties! Life just sort of rolled along, year after year, without any health issues to deal with. And then - bang! Between the two of us we'll have endured - and survived - five surgeries, heart disease, and cancer between the ages of 43 to 58. What a difference a few years makes!

We were fortunate really that we were so healthy when we were younger. Neither of us had as much as a cavity to worry about and that was a good thing since we had four kids and not the greatest health insurance. Just getting the kids their inoculations and antibiotics was a challenge, as the formidable bill from the pharmacy that we were constantly trying to whittle down attested. Ear infections and strep throats are costly and my children had plenty of them! So the fact that our medical issues were non-existent was a blessing.

But now - well, every year I cross my fingers when we're going through our screenings and check-ups. It seems as though anything can and will happen once you hit middle age, so we grin and bear it as much as possible. It truly isn't for the faint of heart. But then again, another of my father's favorite sayings was "It's better than the alternative!"