THE FEAR OF GETTING OLD

Why afraid getting old? We can’t question the changes occurred in the body. It occurred as the cells started to deteriorate slowly as time passes by. Generally, we can’t stop aging because it is part of body’s mechanism. It is beyond our control to hold what is surely coming in the end time of our living.

A beautiful day as we are born seeing the first light of day. It was a day of blessing that we have given the opportunity to live once, the day of too much happiness of our parents as if worries can’t stand a chance to interrupt the day of their joy.

Our growth and development started to take place slowly and patiently from being an infant until we become a small boy ready to walk. It doesn’t end there, as we reached adolescent stage, the body showed its healthiness. The human cells are intact, fresh and robust.

As if the word “aging” doesn’t ring a bell in our ears. We did not give much attention the implication it brings the later years in our life. Our mind was occupied with the kind of enjoyment we choose.  We spend our time away from worries, socialize, adding friends into our list. We don’t have any preparation ahead what is sure to come because it is still in the future. 

Our mind was occupied to something else. We prepared ourselves to handle the effect of life difficulties of our own making. We are happy when we are in abundance as if saving something is not in our vocabulary, whatever there is it should be spend as if there is no tomorrow. We spent it all in leisure to have the satisfaction and contentment we are craving and the excitement of being young, beautiful and healthy.

We did not understand the effect of financial preparedness to the time when we become old and incapacitated. It is hard to admit the truth that we surely age.  If that time will come, there’s no more turning back. We may be empty, lost and penniless. There’s uncertainty ahead, the future is bleak and frightening of which we don’t want to know.

Getting old is natural breakdown from modern lifestyle. There was weakness and tiredness in the body. There is deterioration in the condition of our general wellness. There is sadness in the contour of our face as if there’s no life in it. Diminishing eyesight was common and out-of-focus.  Poor eyesight restraints our movement as we can’t see certainty what’s ahead. 

There is pain in the muscles and joints. There is emptiness in living alone, hopeless, helpless and penniless. There’s fast change in body chemistry and mental power. Mental sharpness and compatibility to reason are deteriorating, forgetfulness is the price. The collapse of mental ability is costly. Better frame of mind is lacking. Self-confidence is lost. We can’t trust ourselves anymore. We can’t communicate easily because of the difficulty in remembering.

We can’t effectively analyze situation because we are poor in interpreting what to do and how to act. Our hearing falter, the gaze has no focus. There’s lack of interest to live. Depression comes in, unhappiness in the making. We are prone to annoyance and sensitive on everything we disliked.

We can’t hear our own voice because of the difficulty in our hearing. Our physical handicap is bothering us too much to the senses. Our physical condition deteriorate, our health conditions aggravate and worsen.

During the younger years of our lives, we celebrated our birthdays without fail. We spent enough to make the celebration with deeper meaning. We celebrated it with too much fanfare every year until the time we don’t want to celebrate anymore. We don’t want to remember that we are started aging. We feared that the time has now come leading the path nearing the end of the road. The life we lead before no longer be the life we are in.

As we aged, we wanted a life as simple as it is. We don’t want to expect more. Less in life is more than enough to be happy and contented. As our physical activity wanes due to health reason, the pain in the body increases and unbearable. There’s no more flexibility in the contraction of our muscles.

It was common to see a scene of an old man or woman sitting in the chair with no focus, unmoved with blank expression. He slightly moved, grimacing due to the pain of arthritis. He felt it quite a long time since mid-fifties. He refrained doing physical activity as it only aggravates his muscles and joint pains.

Loneliness makes his life unbearable but nothing he can do to ease the boredom. Entering into the final chapters of his life kept bouncing in his mind. He wanted to hold the time to pass but the time don’t want to embrace him. His life, his time is now coming to an end.

A good lifestyle may lengthen life for several years more. Too much abuse to the body will cut it short. Following the modern lifestyle is pleasing but also an everlasting pain. Aging makes the skin to wrinkle so fast. The change in body chemistry from being young to become an aged is part of life history of living and dying. It is a fact worth remembering and forgetting but the sure thing is we can’t live forever.