Monday, August 10, 2015

Old as Dirt

August 10, 2015

Yesterday after church, little Nathan wanted me to pitch to him so he could practice his batting. I had changed my clothes and was in the entry room putting on my gym shoes while he waited as  patiently as an almost eight year old can. I reached behind me and grabbed the shoehorn I keep on my shoeshine kit that sits on the window ledge. "What's that?" he inquired.

"It's a shoehorn."

"What's it for?"

"It helps me put on my shoes so I don't break them down in the heel."

"Is that what they used to use in the olden days?"

I wouldn't have minded the question if he had asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eye, but he was deadpan serious. Linda and I have been blessed to enjoy almost daily interaction in the lives of our grandchildren, and have often wondered how we are perceived by them. We both remember our grandparents, how old they seemed to us when we were growing up, and how humbling it is to know that we are older than our grandparents were in the years we remember them most. We wonder if they felt as youthful as we feel (except of course, first thing in the morning when we try to get out of bed), or whether they saw themselves as old as we saw them. It's that perception though, that I'm thinking of tonight. I guess I don't have to wonder any more. In Nathan's eyes, I am...OLD!  But I am also in good health and ready to tackle the next challenges God throws my way, thankful for innocent questions that make me laugh as they remind me of my mortality and the beauty of life. I am thankful too, that age is an experience that will someday be as St. Paul said, "swallowed up in life." The Ancient of Days sits ageless on his throne, readying all Creation for that day when time shall be no more and we enter eternity, nevermore to be weary, alive forever in a way that makes aging meaningless.

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