Reflections on Getting One Year Older

My friend Turtle Doug sent me this photo for my birthday. He loves three things, Apple computers, Ms. Kate and me. So it was only fitting that Ms. Kate be posed in front of the Apple Campus sign. I think he still loves his wife but that's another story that I won't tell here.

So, how is it being 63, which I actually will not be for another 10 minutes. I was born on Jan. 24 at 6:20 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. That's 8:20 p.m. Central Standard Time in Minneapolis. When you are younger you always want to be older. When you are older you hold out to the last second before adding that extra year.

I really like the age I am. My sister and I agree that after a certain point in your life you stop using those magnifying mirrors that hotels often have. I'm convinced that the reason our eyesight goes as we get older is that we don't really need to see things that clearly. We understand life at a level that doesn't have to be seen under a microscope or through bifocals.

While these years have been great, some of the best years of my life were spent being a mother to a wonderful son, Mark. His dad always worked nights so Mark and I spent a lot of time together. He's a remarkable young man and I take a lot of credit for that. Julia is a lucky woman to have found him, and he's a lucky man to have found her.

Kerry left a card on my keyboard last night after I went to bed. He has an incredible ability to say the most wonderful things on occasions like this and actually most occasions. His message inside the card read, "Life is full of choices -- you are mine." That's the man with whom I intend to spend the rest of my life. He also bought me an incredibly beautiful handcrafted wooden jewelry box for all the jewels he has bestowed on me over the past years.

We are having Chinese takeout tonight; my choice. The weather is not nice (by California standards) so I'd rather send him out for food than have to go too. Sunday night we will celebrate our seventh anniversary at a wonderful new restaurant that serves only local meats that do not have hormones or antibiotics. The cattle, chickens, pigs and lambs are allowed to graze in a natural environment.

Okay it's 6:20 p.m. PST so I'm officially 63, and I still feel great.

I start my 64th year as a quilter. A year ago I would not have imagined such a thing. I am besotted with fabric. Today I began cutting out the blocks for the wedding quilt. With each stitch I offer a blessing for a wonderful and long life for Julia and Mark.

I have received numerous birthday greetings from family, friends and fellow bloggers; all of them have warmed my heart. One of my favorites was from Blogauthor; the photo was of her young son holding a cupcake with a lit candled that spiraled upward. She swears they sang Happy Birthday to me. Her son lost his first tooth recently so his smile is especially captivating. He may lose the others just in time for fresh corn season.

That's all my thoughts for today. Life is good.