Recently, I had lunch with a group of ladies I’ve known for years. We were celebrating our dear, eternally youthful friend’s – lean over now, I’ll whisper it in your ear – 59th birthday. She does not look a day over 40 which is something I do not hold against her. Yes, that makes me some kind of saint.
I met the lovely birthday girl twenty-three years ago in Mommy & Me class. She was my first “mommy” friend and we’ve watched each other’s children grow and us, well, we’ve grown older too. She loves to remind me that I was just a baby back then. A baby with a baby, I like to say. That makes me feel a little younger. I’ll take what I can get.
Around the table our ages ranged from 48-59, of which I’m on the lower end, but not lowest (though I’m holding on to that like a pageant girls’ sash), so after catching up with the lives of our mostly grown kids, you can imagine conversation quickly moved to how our bodies have morphed over the years. Not just weight gain, but some seismic shifting too.
Years of diligently working out finally comes to a head with the fact that almost no matter what we do, at some point in our 50s our arms will start to go and get soft. Our middles too. Thighs? I won’t even discuss them. We eat less, exercise more, and yet it’s an uphill battle. Dammit. (Did I just say that that out loud?)
This made me sad…until the dessert came.
Chocolate and sparklers do that to me.
After indulging in the chocolatey goodness, we all agreed that getting older surely beats the alternative. And joked that maybe at the next birthday gathering we should have a plastic surgeon join us and each gal gets to fix one trouble spot.
Who can choose just one?!
All kidding aside, being able to laugh at nature’s little joke on us, in the company of old friends, is one of life’s great blessings.
Here’s to many more birthday’s surrounded by good friends and chocolate cake.
Amen!
There are definitely parts of me that are less firm than when I was younger. But now in my 50s I feel great. I lost 55 lbs when I turned 50, almost 4 years ago, and I love the way I now look. Sure my arms have wings, and my thighs jiggle, but I look so much better than I did in my 40s that I no longer care!
saggy arms,blobbier thighs, lines on the face–that’s what so great about being among long-time friends: they have them too. [even the ones wearing spanx jeans]. Nothing like chocolate to ease the shared pain.
There’s nothing like old friends, is there. And old thighs, too 🙂
Growing older with friends is the best thing. Ever.
Everyone looks the same in the retirement home, so enjoy the chocolate and sparklers now! Very happy birthday, Linda! My long-term friends are a joy, and I love looking back on how far we’ve come together. I’m happy to hear you have the same type of people around you.
Old friends are the best–they make swallowing that aging pill (and chocolate) go down so much easier! Happy Birthday!!
I remember the first time someone said to me, “I hope I am like you when I am your age”. Obviously a compliment but stung a bit. I agree with your other commenters that having friends that are going through the changes with you – that’s so comforting. Fun post!
I celebrated a milestone birthday in April. Yeppers. The BIG six oh. You took the words right out of mouth. There are sags, wrinkles and age spots, but, as you said, it sure beats the alternative. My marathon running, healthy eating brother-in-law was found dead on the floor by his wife a week after my birthday from undiagnosed heat disease. He was 50. Carpe diem—or in other words—good friends and chocolate. Go for it!
Happy Birthday Suzanne! And I agree, eat the dessert first!
Always a treat to read you, young lady. It is a joy and a blessing to grow old with close friends. I’m still lunching with my buddies from grammar school. I count myself lucky.
Aw, so glad you enjoyed this! One of my oldest friends is from grammar school. We share such great memories!
Old friends are great. As are new old friends. 😀 Getting older comes with so many other perks, the crap that happens to our bodies is worth it. (Or so I keep telling myself.)
I love my 2 friends who I’ve known for, gulp, 45 years. Identical twins, but in the BEST shape. No tummies, small tushes. Ugh, I would hate them if I didn’t love them so much!
So glad you have your besties, and that we both have each other and the other blogging buds that we are now great friends with today. Hooray for us all enjoying the ride together, Linda!! It’s been fun so far and just think what’s in store.
No tummies, small tushies? I don’t know if I could be friends with them. Just kidding!!! My oldest friend is a tiny peanut and has the body of a 15-year-old. I still love her 😉
It’s so nice to hear that you have stayed connected with old-time friends. I have stayed connected with a handful of friends from childhood and they have been so instrumental in my life.
If you can’t beat them, join them. Since fighting getting older is a waste of time, may as well enjoy the benefits – one of which is seizing the opportunity to get together with friends to catch up and celebrate. You look beautiful in the photo, by the way. And no older than 30!
Thanks Hayley, it’s slightly blurry, which is how I photograph best! Okay, to heck with the exercising, let’s eat!
Linda, what a wonderful gathering! Being able to have good friends to share this march of time makes all the difference in the world. It is “one of life’s great blessings!”
Happy Birthday to you, belatedly! MD
Birthdays definitely beat the alternative…but I’d like to invite any willing plastic surgeon to my next (big) birthday bash!!
It sounds like a wonderful lunch – and I agree with everything you said!
It sounds like a wonderful lunch – and I agree with everything you said!
I just had a lunch like that. Not for a birthday, but a get-together with friends from camp that I have known since we were 10. 33 years later, we still don’t run out of things to talk about and we still have each other’s backs. Love my camp girls. Thanks for sharing your story!