Old Age is a Gift.

(I just got this in an e-mail and I love it!)

Old Age, I decided, is a gift
> >
> > I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I
> >have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair
> >over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt.
> >And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my
> >mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonise over those
> >things for long.
> >
> > I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my
> >loving family for less grey hair or a flatter belly. As I've
> >aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of
> >myself. I've become my own friend.
> >
> > I don' t chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not
> >making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I
> >didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled
> >to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
> >
> >
> > I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon;
> >before they understood the great freedom that comes with ageing.
> >
> > Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer
> >until 4 AM and sleep until noon?
> >
> > I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60&70's,
> >and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love .. I
> >will.
> >
> > I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a
> >bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I
> >choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set
> > They, too, will get old.
> >
> > I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is
> >just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important
> >things.
> >
> > Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your
> >heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child
> >suffers, or even when some body's beloved pet gets hit by a
> >car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and
> >understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine
> >and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
> >
> > I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning
> >gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into
> >deep grooves on my face. So many have never l aughed, and so many
> >have died before their hair could turn silver
> >
> > As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less
> >about what other people think. I don't question myself
> >anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.
> >
> > So, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I
> >have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am
> >still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have
> >been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert
> >every single day. (If I feel like it)

Health and the Holy Spirit

Spirit Daily - Daily spiritual news from around the world: "Have you not noticed how frustrating it is to try and figure matters out for ourselves? One year eggs are bad for us. Then they are good. We are told to drink eight glasses of water a day. Then we are told that studies don't support that recommendation. Each week, there is a new vitamin that is a panacea.
In fact, there are certain good things for us but each body is different and that's why, along with the suggestions of doctors, we need to ask the Holy Spirit what we should drink and eat."