When I was younger, I always wondered what old people thought. Did they consider the fact that death was nearer? Did they hate looking older, having wrinkles, having health issues? Were they lonely?

Now that I’m 63, I can definitively say that in my brain, I’m the same girl. I’ve learned a good deal and I’m calmer about most things, but I’m generally the same person. I feel the same as I ever did. I don’t feel like I am an old person.

However, it turns out that regardless of what our brains may or may not do, our bodies are only designed to function at certain levels for so long. I used to think nothing of picking up a 50-pound bag of horse feed and now I’d be REALLY hard pressed to make that happen. I could do it in a pinch, but I’d rather not. Little pains and hurts that would have made me run to the doctor at 30 are now just everyday nuisances.

My body will not look or function like it did when I was 25. I may have a good body “for 63”, but its not getting me on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Besides, I won’t even wear a bikini any more. I eat half of what I used to, but I still hold or gain weight. Recently, I discovered that I can’t comfortably wear a ring on certain fingers because my knuckles have grown a tad due to some form of arthritis and I can’t get the ring off without lotion. These things are depressing if you let them be, but you can also choose to just dust them off and keep moving on.

Somehow, I thought, aging won’t happen to me like it does to other people. Wrong! I watch even my cutest friends’ bodies and skin change and it’s disconcerting at times. But only for a moment of realization, and then I’m back to enjoying my life as always. I think that, at least for me, the inevitability of aging has become a companion of sorts- It is always with me, and it’s okay. The wisdom of age is really a thing- you know so much more than you did when you were young, and it is oddly calming. I would happily be this age if my body weren’t doing odd things from time to time, but there is not a thing I can do to stop that process. I can do weight-bearing exercises, do puzzles to keep my brain sharp, etc. but in the end I am still going to keep aging. So, acceptance is key. And it isn’t hard to do.