Countdown to Sixty

Ten years ago, tomorrow, I turned 50,
jumped out of an airplane 12,000 feet above the earth
 and jumped right into the second half of my life.


How could I know, as my parachute (and the large man on my back)
carried me over the sheep farms of New Zealand,
where the years ahead would take me!


The past ten years have been filled with so much activity...
so much love and fun...
the icing on the cake for this wonderful and full life I have lived.


I have no idea how it happened that 60 years of my life has passed.
(And I know my Mom would say she can't believe she has a daughter who is 60!)


Most people view time in a linear manner...
like a timeline with a starting point and an eventual endpoint....
somewhere way down the line.


Me...
I have always considered time to be circular...
like a Slinky!

Surely you had a Slinky at some point in your childhood...
or perhaps your children had one.
A Slinky, like a big long spring, has a beginning point and an end.
However all of the distance between the beginning and end is placed repetitively in a 
circular manner.

To me, each circle is a year of my life...
with January being at the top.
A year progresses like a clock... around the circle and back to the top...
only to start on it's course around the next coil.


When I take time to really examine my life,
I stretch that Slinky out as far as I can...
seeing the days, weeks, months, and years that have passed.
But, most of the time that Slinky is tightly coiled...
giving me the feeling that my youth is still within my reach.
Perhaps this is why it seems that the years have passed so quickly.


As I celebrate the life that I have lived thus far...
I realize that there are fewer coils ahead of me than behind me.


And while I have no idea how long my Slinky is...
I am hoping that I have many more years of love and laughter ahead.


And although I may not be able to do cartwheels any more
(for fear of breaking something)...
I am still the same girl inside that I have always been...
anticipating the next adventure...
jumping in with both feet!


And although my birth certificate swears I am turning 60 tomorrow...
I am sure that it's really just 40!
(PS...I am planning to remove all of the mirrors from my house...
so that I cannot see as the coming years pass...that how I feel may not match how I look!)

PSS...  Tomorrow's blog post will be written by Hubbs...
a birthday present and day off for me!
And I am not allowed to edit it in any way.... consider yourself warned!

Comments

Kathy Leitzel (kcchick) said…
Happy Birthday Bev, I too, hope you have many more years of birthdays!!!!!! Have a wonderful day off, and I can't wait to see what hubs has in store for us!!!!!!LOL
Louise Stopford said…
Wishing you "Many Happy Returns" for a wonderful birthday. You are right about the years, I still feel the same inside as I did at 21. Don't know where all the years have gone and I can't believe I have been married 31 years and have a son who is nearly 30!! I think the most important thing I have learnt (and I know I have said this before) is to "be in the moment" and enjoy life. Sure it is sometimes stressful and worrying and things don't always go right, but when they do you must savour that moment and if things are not quite so good, that bad time will pass. So .... enjoy your birthday and your day off. P.S. You look amazing.
Colleen said…
HaPpy bIrThday!🎂 I really enjoyed today's post...since turning 60 six months ago..you made me realize...the mirrors, the mirrors, I NEED to get rid of the mirrors!
daisy g said…
Hope you enjoy your special day. I'm so glad you are able to live life on your terms, that is indeed a gift. Happy Birthday!
Unknown said…
Happy birth anniversary eve! May it be a wonderful blessed year ahead. Lisa G in TN
Lynne said…
Happy Beautiful Birthday In The Spiral . .
I look forward to hearing how you'll be spending your day!
Happy Birthday Beverly!
I like your Slinky analogy very much! You and I are the same age -- I will hit the Big Six Oh this summer. 1957 babies are the BEST! Have a wonderful day tomorrow!
Anonymous said…
Happy birthday!
Candice said…
I believe that you are only as old as you feel...so I wish you a Happy, Happy Birthday, Bev. Hope that you celebrate it heartily! Looking forward to Jack's post honoring you on your big day.
jaz@octoberfarm said…
almost happy birthday! today is my daughter's birthday and her mother can't believe she has a child that is 32 years old! i can't wait for tomorrow's post! growing old is not for the meek! it takes real balls to age gracefully!
Anonymous said…
Wishing you a spectacular birthday tomorrow! Not sure just how long I've been enjoying your blog, but I look forward to it every day and miss it on the weekend!! LOL
How can you miss having a day filled with love and animals and God's good earth ... just look at where you live! You have it all and will have it for many years to come!!
Hugs from Colorado ... Marcia [Mar-see-ah and I'm 73]. LOL
GeorgiaHoneyBee said…
Happy Birthday!!!! May the Lord bless you with many many many more long, healthy, activity filled years. Thank you for sharing your life with us!
GeorgiaHoneyBee
Jennifer said…
What a truly beautiful way to describe life. Happy Birthday and may God bless you (and us) with many more Tails from the Farm.
littlemancat said…
Happy Birthday - love the slinky idea, very wise and light-hearted too. Just like you.
Just a giggle - you're a Rooster year in Chinese horoscopes. :-)
From a 1947 gal, now we're talking older!
Mary
The JR said…
Happy Birthday to you. hahaha, at least you could do a cartwheel. I've never been able to perform that feat. And, also would never jump out of an airplane. I've always told my friend if I die from falling, investigate. I was pushed.

Have fun on your 60th.

Kelly H. said…
Happy almost-birthday, Bev! I have been a lover of your blog for so long and am tickled to realize we share a birthday! Tomorrow is my 33rd.
You sure make 60 look good, and I really do believe that so much of your age is mental. Love how you stay so active and enjoy the heck out of your life. It's contagious when I read your blog! Hope your day is special.
Happy Birthday and blessings for many more. I turned 66 on March 12th and I looked in the mirror and wondered when that happened?
Anonymous said…
Happiest of Happy Birthdays to you. You bring joy into my life every morning, love hearing your life activities!!
Marcy in Atlanta
Anonymous said…
Hope you have a wonderful birthday!
janie said…
Happy Birthday, Bev!!!

Hope your day is great. You look wonderful!!! I enjoy your blog, have a good day.

Janie
Anonymous said…
Happy Birthday Beverley. You are still a youngster, I am sure your Mom feels the same, we never see our children grow old!!!
May you have many more years to enjoy life as it is now..

and selfishly I shall say for all of us to continue enjoying watching you going through your days in perfect bliss..
with love

Annie v.
This N That said…
Happy, Happy Birthday..Likening your life to a slinky is very imaginative and clever..I don't think that has anything to d with how fast things have gone by..It gets even faster as ones slinky shortens....60 !! It's all relative..sounds good to me.You don't look a day over 30 ;)
I'm hoping for a very long slinky for you and wishing you many more years of love and laughter.. Looking forward to tomorrows post..
Much Love...
An American in Tokyo said…
Happy, Happy Birthday!!!

I hope you enjoy the next 60 years as much as the first!!

(You never know with medical technology these days, humans seem to live longer and longer!)

Thank you for sharing your wonderful life with us!!
deodar said…
I turned 64 a week ago, that much closer to social security. Holey moley how the heck did that happen? Good idea about the mirrors, I'm purely startled when I catch a fleeting glimpse -who the heck is that old woman!
diane in northern wis said…
Aww.....Happy Happy Birthday to you! I love your blog so much. May you have a wonderful 60th birthday. Wow ...I love that pic of you sailing through the sky from the plane. What a brave one you are! May however many birthdays you have left to celebrate on this earth, be wonderful ones for you Bev. And thank you for the great blog...I look forward to reading it soooo much. Happy Birthday and God Bless You.
Anonymous said…
hi beverly...may i wish you a very happy birthday...may your years ahead be as or more so, full of life, laughter, love and continued blessings...enjoy your day tomorrow and look forward to your hubbs post...take care and, again, a very happy birthday...sally
Nuri said…
Happy Birthday, dear Bee Haven Maven! May all your hopes be fulfilled and all your wishes come true, and may you have many more decades of love and laughter and good health ahead!