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I am not comfortable with growing older. To me, aging goes hand in hand with loss. I have a long list of loved ones that, according to me, need to live forever. I am not sure that the Lord will let me boss him around on this one but I try. But it is more than just the loss of people we love that concerns me, it is also the losses we face within ourselves that I am not prepared to acknowledge. Loss of eyesight, loss of hearing, loss of hair, loss of bone density, loss, loss, loss….
So for me, I try to focus on the here and now- right now, I am healthy, strong, and “with it” most of the time though some people I know would argue that point. Right now, I am better than I was years ago because I have experience under my belt. Right now I am enjoying watching my kids grow and change. Right now I am just fine. We all know that loss is inevitable and ignoring this fact of life will not make it go away.
This is why decisions about our lives should be made when we are healthy and “with it.” We don’t like to think about what happens when we are older or will my kids take care of me- but the truth is, we need to think about these things. If we wait, these decisions can be so much harder to make when we find ourselves in distress. Right down to deciding to who will care for my kids if something happens to me, these decisions are hard and we would rather ignore them. But they are important. So focus on today but prepare for tomorrow.
Shannon Eagle is the Marketing and Development Assistant at Snyder Village in Metamora, IL. "I have a passion for writing and enjoy working with the diverse group of people at Snyder Village. I chose this topic because I work every day with people of all ages. Working with the independent retirement residents are like having grandparents looking after me all day long," Eagle said.
