Just a Number

They say that sixty is the new forty, fifty is the new thirty, and forty? Forty is the new twenty! I must say, I'm inclined to agree. The other day in my performing class, we were learning a new hip-hop dance. Now, I'm no Karmie-from-the-hood, but I was keeping up and really loving it. As Abby, our choreographer, was bringing class to a close, I raised my hand. Call it adrenalin, call it Ritalin, call it my ZipFizz, but I looked at all my 'peeps' in that class, and exclaimed while snapping my hands in a z-formation, "Hey everybody? Age will NEVER be an excuse! Jus' sayin." Their reaction was AWESOME; some cheering, some laughing, some clapping, a high five or two, and a few BIG hugs. And I. Felt. Great.

When I decided to go to college, I met with a counselor at the school who 'specialized' in 'returning adult' students. He told me all about the workshops, the special classes, and the club they offered, all for 'adult' students. One lady chimed in,"I am so glad I don't have to be with eighteen and twenty year olds ALL day." Now, call me crazy, but, after age eighteen, aren't we all adults? Legally, I mean? Having worked with eighteen to twenty somethings for quite some time, I actually LIKE hanging around eighteen and twenty year olds! In fact, I more than like it. I love it! And while I'm confessing to y'all, I'll admit I love teenagers, I think they're fun; especially MINE! And I think it's because, in my head, I AM STILL TWENTY! Not in the I'm forever looking back, living in denial, pining for the past sense, but in the I'm young, healthy, feel great, and living in the now sense!

Needless to say, I didn't take any of those workshops, or classes, or join the 'adults only' club. (I don't go to those kind of clubs anyway.) I took regular classes, joined regular clubs, and I'll be danged if I'm not gonna have the same college experience as my twenty-something class-mates. It's a blast! Age notwithstanding, I learn so much from all of my friends, and I like to think they learn a thing or two from me. We study together, they come hang out at my house, and my kids think it's cool that their mom has 'college' friends. And you know what? I'm pretty sure hangin' out with these amazing people of ALL ages is why I feel so great. And P.S. Just so we're clear. Forty is the new twenty.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your Engines....

Y'know, I'm a pretty positive person. But there are just some days that can really kick my trash. Yesterday was one of those days. It's not that anything devastatingly catastrophic happened. It's just all the little things that can sometimes pile onto my already very full plate. My brain was mush, and I have to admit, I got really discouraged.

When I started college, I sincerely wondered if my forty something brain could take the abuse. You may recall, I had a friend who helped me enter the mysterious world of academia. She said,"If I can do this, you can do this." So on those days when I became really overwhelmed, I would repeat those words of wisdom in my head over and over. " I can do this, I can do this, I can do this". But you can't just say it ANY old way. You have to give it the cadence and rhythm of a train, you have to say it three times, and you have to take deep breaths while you repeat it. (Did I mention I can be a bit OCD???) Just like the Little Engine That Could, I repeated my mantra till I could hoist my caboose over the crest of the insurmountable exam or paper or completely useless math equation.

So what, you get discouraged. I do too. Everybody does. But you know what? You have the power to let your fire go out or to refuel your furnace. You can decide to let your engine rust over or to keep the pistons pumping. And, like me, you can do it, you can do it, you can do it.