I have had two months on my radar since youth: October and December. October because of my birthday and December because of Christmas. Things seem to go well for me in these months. I recall trying to remember my birth year when I was a child and it seemed difficult to fasten on either 1957 or 1958…they both seemed to be in another world as I lived in the ’60s. I read where one of my classmates was referring to her boys and how they were always there for her and her husband including through hospitalizations and I considered that I had reached the senior section of the life library. We were out for brunch at Fork And Vine courtesy of MJ… and Jonathon and I enjoyed speaking with Kathy and Pat with whom we attend church. What lovely people and fun to talk with.

My old friend Steve and I celebrated our birthdays together many years ago since they fell on the same day. We would find a restaurant and enjoy being with each other as we commiserated about the past and the future.

Birthdays are historical markers for me. I look back to where I have been and forward to where I am going. I have my tattoos from 60 and 65 and now the journey to 70. The Golden Years are funny times. Physically they are years of diminishment. Spiritually they are years of wonder. The salad makes the difference! MJ and I are eating a big salad almost every day. I have lost 15 pounds. I am astounded that in my senior years, I like salad! I have noticed over a bit of time that most seniors do not eat a lot of food. Now I have discovered that Intermittent Fasting is all of the rage! I grew up with the concrete motto to eat three square meals per day. I always found it somewhat difficult with round plates. In any case, I am never hungry when I first arise and often not before supper. Now I am one of the cool kids…

I kicked around the idea of doing something different for my birthday this year…but have returned to the traditional favorite of a movie in St. Louis and dinner on The Hill. The enrichment of life and the fun and happiness that we all seek is inherent in the eyes of the ones we love. I recall my birthdays past when I was in my 30s 40s or 50s and how much I relished that I had made it to those ripe old ages. Now I see that life is like a fine wine…it is meant to be savored and sipped slowly and thought about.