Thoughts Have Hands

Hitting seventy
My birthday clock ticked seventy Tuesday. It felt no different than 68 or 69, but I do wonder at the ” how long ” and the sheer pace of things. I admit to the occasional flashing image of slamming into a wall. But life feels full of energy, and I’m hungry to learn and eager for a new day to begin.
I’m sure my reflexes are a bit slower although my brain chants nonchalantly– it’s just a number. Plus, against the advise of family and friends, I can lift Mac-again and again, when she says pick me up. Then there is Miles who loves to play toss and happily wags his tail for another walk around the neighborhood.
I mourn hearing loss the most. I miss a lot of p’s, b’s, and t’s in conversation with family and friend. So it’s “I’m sorry, what did you say”, or “I missed that”. Staying connected slows me down more than I like to admit. Talk loses its charm when a need to hear interrupts the rhythm or is mistaken for someone’s lack of clarity.  
Often I just nod and smile. Lip reading is fun, although a bit dicey at times, too. I have ordered hearing aids as a birthday gift. Maybe they will do the trick this time. 
But isolation pays dividends to silence. Doors open to reflection and thoughts I have not made time for before. 
Quiet mornings with coffee and afternoon walks calm the swirl of events and the steaming daily news. Memories surface like old logs floating at river’s edge and ideas leap trout-like at passing flies. I catch a few for further study. I’m drawn to write, read, and the taking of photographs these days.  
Luckily my health is holding out against the wind and rain. My workouts and walks keep me balanced and the back straight. It is a blessing that it no longer hurts like it did for years.
A little arthritis in the grip reminds, but it passes for firm. And happily when I wake each morning the light bulb is on in the attic. 
I have been retired ten years. I have fully recovered from professional life. Work lost its flavor between the striving to accumulate authority to perform, and performing for authority.
Distance offers perspective. Work provided opportunities to serve, but I much prefer to volunteer. I do here and there with church, neighborhood, and friend. It is rewarding, much more so than the din of timelines and inflexible routines in professional life. I’m taking some pleasure these days in the progressive ideas being pursued in the criminal justice system because during my time I was a lone voice. 
So enough! Today every breath expands my mind with hope for tomorrow.
Therefore, I submit to the department of heavenly admissions a humble request for a delay in scheduling a departure time. I would prefer indefinite round trip flights around the sun, please. The sights are a joy and the people I meet …pardon the fun, are to die for….
See you around my friends. I may not hear all that is said but never think I’m not interested or don’t care. Love ya. And thanks for the good wishes. THH