I Already Wear Purple...

I have enjoyed greatly the second blooming...suddenly you find-at the age of 50 , say-that a whole new life has opened before you. ~ Agatha Christie

 When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat that doesn't go, and doesn't suit me,
And I shall spend my pension
on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals,
and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I am tired,
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells,
And run my stick along the public railings,
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other people's gardens,
And learn to spit.
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat,
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go,
Or only bread and pickle for a week,
And hoard pens and pencils and beer mats
and things in boxes.
But now we must have clothes that keep us dry,
And pay our rent and not swear in the street,
And set a good example for the children.
We will have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practise a little now?
So people who know me
are not too shocked and surprised,
When suddenly I am old
and start to wear purple!

Jenny Joseph

                                                                                 Forgive me for borrowing so many wonderful words from two very wise women, but I am merely 40 and still wondering what to do with getting old. The above poem sounds about right. Even though I do wear purple on occasion, I am never tempted to wear an accessory that does not match. This, I think, is a good suggestion. Can I accept the fact that what other people think of me is none of my business? Or will I have the privilege of growing old enough to realize that no one is thinking about me in the first place? How liberating to purposely clash.
Personally I am excited to live a long life, mostly in part because I am such a late bloomer.  Great things are ahead I just know it--the real good stuff is yet to come! I am guessing this based not on my intentions of living an extraordinary life from here on out, but on the hope given to me by my parents and others in their generation whose paths I have crossed. It seems to me that it is their attitudes about life--how they think and feel about themselves, what they think and feel about others--that stave off what could otherwise be a mighty bleak existence.
Perhaps this sounds preposterous, as if someone could hold back age-related diseases with positive thinking! There are certain things in life we are just powerless over, right? From what I'm being told, growing old is impacted by many different factors--that not one can be the most influential. If I had to choose though, I would say that it is psychological factors which play the biggest part in how a person ages--at least in as much as they can control their thought processes. People who have an honest desire to live in the solution instead of in the problem--yes that means optimistic people--have a head start I think when it comes to good self-care and having the ability to take right action. Does that mean those cup half empty folks are doomed to a lonely, painful time of aging? No--because anyone can change--have an awakening--turn over a new leaf. But make haste people! If life is a process and we run ourselves into a corner, how long do we have to make things right? If I sprint into the jungle for 20 years can I expect to turn around and walk out in four?
I think how we feel about ourselves and whether we cherish life in general plays the biggest part in our aging process because yes...bad things do happen. The road throws twist and turns our way--and our attitude helps determine how we handle that--to a certain extent. The rest of it is we are powerless over anyway.
So remember...practice makes perfect. I guess I'd better start mix-matching my clothes now, so no one will later be surprised that my socks and hat clash so loudly, that I've kept my expectations low and my acceptance high, and that I'm happy to be too old to drive properly.