Mountains

2026Mountains                                 (Approx. 400 wds.)

Mountains

     Old age is climbing one mountain after another.  This thought occurred to me the other night after, I think, I was having an especially tough day.  I should mention that I’m 96 years old.  My sister, who’s five years younger, expresses the same feeling, by saying that everything has become a project.

     At 96 simple things like getting dressed in the morning and undressed at night become mountains to climb,  or, as my sister says, projects.   Besides being 96 years old I have a bum knee.  Also, like almost all oldsters, my sense of balance has declined.  So even getting out of bed n the morning is a project.  Once I do stand up I hold onto the walker that’s right next to the bed to stay erect and prevent falling.  Nowadays the walker jas become my best friend.

     Once out and up comes the act of getting dressed, omce done without thought, now with some acrobatics.  To simplify the act I don’t ordinarily wear socks.  When I do I have some aids to help getting them on.  I also wear Crocs, which I can slip my feet into.  They can be worn inside the house and outside.

     Being old and hobbled by a bad knee I’m pretty well housebound.  However, I do go outside once every day, to collect my mail.  I use my walker to go down my driveway to the mailbox, then to climb back up.  It wasn’t until I got old that I realized my driveway was inclined and it seems to get steeper with every year.

     Another thing that comes with old age is that things keep falling to the floor at a time when it’s become more and more difficult to bend down.  So my sister and myself have what we call grabbers that we use to pick things up.

     As we oldsters know, old age also brings with it any number of aches and pains that come without explanation and sometimes go.  Mine are usually in my shoulders and neck but sometimes appear in other places.  So there’s a lot of heating and icing.

     I live in a retirement community and there’s a saying there that old age isn’t good but it’s better than the alternative.  Sometimes I’m not so sure.  In the meantime I’ll keep trying to climb those mountains.