Most of us remember being kids and, while we might have been worried about death, our lives were so long ahead of us. What they don’t tell you back then is that your childhood is long and slow, and you end up getting so excited about turning 18 and 21… then you’re suddenly 30 and then 40 and then you’re 50 and however many years are left of your life, the best of your health is probably being you…
Ok, so that’s a very morbid and sad way of looking at life. But it is what it is. Turning 34 this year really threw me. I’ve always just said “oh, I’m 25… that’s not that old yet” or, “I’m 30, that’s not old, right?” But 34 is very close to 40. And 40 is very close to 50. And then you have 15 years before retirement. Even healthy people start to die off. Your parents are likely gone by then. Life is almost over.
On the less morbid side of this, we try to plan for our “retirements” all while running so fast towards them — we can stop and enjoy life for a bit while it’s here. I’m trying to do that more as I approach what could very well be middle age. And maybe that means saving a bit less for retirement, and spending too much money on rent so we have a little more space and a place for guests to stay.
My 20s were all about aggressively saving. I spent a lot too, but not nearly as much as I could have. Now, I kind of want to spend some more… save a little less. Enjoy life. It won’t last forever.
It is a great point, life is in many ways a short ride. But I have to admit I always smile when a twenty something or in your case, a thirty something, tries to pick an age where age related health breakdowns will surely rob away quality of life they generally pick fifty something or if they are particularly generous maybe sixty. My wife and I are both 62. We got up at ten til 5 AM and ran eight miles in 32 deg F in the dark with other sixty pluser’s. Then later in the day we both had tough tennis matches, followed by beer of course. More tennis today planned. I’m only marginally slower than I was twenty years ago and our tennis is the best of our lives. My high school tennis team self would be hard pressed to get a game off of older me now. Trust me, if you take care of yourself you should be able to pursue active hobbies into your eighties. We haven’t worked in years at 9 to 5’s because we saved and invested and lived frugally.