Friday, May 10, 2019

Personal: Where is Adulthood?

I am a Septuagenarian!


So, how do I live with that?

I was OK when my age was less than sixty-nine years, eleven months and umpty-ump days.

I often announced my age as being "near 70." But in my head, and in my heart, that didn't matter. I saw myself as "in my sixties."

For small talk, I joked that "I was born in the first half of the last century." The phrase was intended to be entertaining, and it didn't really reflect how I felt about me.

This last April I left my "sixties" and became a 70-year-old. I am having a hard time wrapping my head around that.

To exacerbate that realization, my "condition" will last nine years, eleven months, and umpty-ump days. It does not get better: at that time I will roll into my eighties! In my always-humble opinion, that is an awesome number, too.

Part of my frustration is that, inside, I don't feel grown up. Yet. I'm not sure where that comes from. I've had a productive life:
  • I've had two marriages and one "spouse-like" relationship that lasted longer than the sum of my two marriages.
  • My one son has two sons of his own. 
    • He was able to provide a home where the two boys had a stay-at-home mom. 
    • My grandsons have completed high school and are productive citizens.
    • College does not appear to be in the near future for my grandsons.
      • I cannot criticize: My own college career culminated with an Associate's degree when I was in my 50s.
  • I've lived well; never on the streets. 
    • My parents provided homes in Oklahoma, North and South Dakota, and Louisiana. As a child, we vacationed almost every year in Minneapolis and Kentucky.
    • The smallest home I've owned was 1,100 sq feet; the largest almost 4,000.
    • I've spent my adult years in Louisiana, Atlanta, and Florida. Florida included a year's residence in Key West.
  • I served in the Army, and survived a year in Viet Nam.
  • I've owned several businesses, and currently building a new one.
  • I served as a contractor to the military for two decades. That gave me a lot of professional experience as a computer systems engineer, and allowed my to travel from Hawaii to the Middle East on their nickel.
  • I've often volunteered and given freely of my time and skills. Most recently I've volunteered for the USO, SCORE, and the local Genealogy society.
  • I'm willing to try to build or repair anything, and I'm usually successful.

But I still don't feel grown up. Wherefore art thou, adulthood?

(Sorry: I don't have the answer.)

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