Reflections on Turning 60

I turned sixty years old last Saturday. I see that as monumental, really.  There was a time I was uncertain I would make it this far.  I spent much of my post-high school youth in a fog of chemicals and debauchery. I drank at every opportunity (which was often), I was a three pack a day smoker. That was the least of it. At the time, I wasn't really sure I wanted to live to be sixty. 

But I have gotten this far, and have no plans on stopping for now. Growing older is a privilege some people will never experience. Cliched but true.  I have had many friends who are no longer here, at least not physically. In dreams, I still talk to my brother, Marvin, although it's been almost twenty years since his passing. As many people know, he was my role model.  Others also, have passed through the veil and there are many I still miss terribly. But I persist in my somewhat charmed life, and my biggest wish is to stick around as long as the universe sees fit.

Valerie, my wife and boon companion, is a huge part of my existence.  I'm not sure what I would do without her and I'm not sure I would be writing this of she hadn't entered my life when she did. She is truly my shelter from the storm. We have been together for over eighteen years, and every morning I fall in love all over again. 

And what do I plan to do now that I have reached this landmark.  I will just keep going. What else is there to do? Why stop now? I have no reason to give up. I have no idea what the future holds.  Wouldn't life be really fucking boring if everyone knew what was going to happen to them? I don't really want to know.  Do you really want to know what's going to happen? I prefer to look at each day, each moment, with a child-like wonder, despite the cynicism my sixty years has offered me. And I'm not really as cynical as I seem.  As George Carlin said, "Scratch a cynic and you'll find a disappointed idealist." 

I really offer no advice here, other than to live the life you are capable of, and stop worrying about what others think.  They are not you and you are not them. Sure, feel free to seek advice, but feel free to call bullshit on any advice offered. 

I hope to look back on this post in ten years and think about what changes have occurred. The future may be uncertain, but right now it looks to me to be terribly bright.

Peace.