My best friend just had her birthday the other day and crossed the big 4-0. It was no biggie, just a regular birthday celebration. Not only is she super healthy, but she is also back in school working on a certificate in nutritional science. She works as an accountant now, but she is considering a career change to become a nutritional counselor. In fact, I think she might even be in better health now than when she was in college and eating ramen noodles and pulling all-nighters!
My perception of age has definitely changed over the years. I remember when my parents turned 55 and I couldn’t sleep at night worrying that they might contract some fatal age-related disease. After all, 55 was the age that people started being called “senior citizens” and could get discounts on things like bus fare and museum tickets.
Looking back, I find it laughable that I thought being 55 was old! My parents are now 80 and still very active. In fact, they out-hiked me the other day…they actually had to stop to wait for me to catch my breath before continuing the hike.
With the combination of longer life spans and better health into old age, no wonder people call 60 the new 40, and 40 the new 20. If you are under 40, you can consider yourselves the new teenagers, and for those under than 30, you are still enjoying your extended childhood!
All in all, this is a very interesting time to live in! People today have a greater chance of remaining healthy for many more years than previous generations, so take good care of yourself and never stop learning!
I will follow this post with a post on the effects of a global aging population.
Keep your eyes peeled, and please upvote and follow me if you liked what you read!