As a child, I always seemed to be the youngest one. I was almost the youngest in my class at school, the youngest out of my cousins and the youngest in the Cubs or boy Scouts.
I remember once, at age 10, we were asked to work out how old we would be in the year 2000, Wow, I would be 53! Surely I would never ever get to that age!
As I zoomed through my teens, never expecting to hit 20 because of armageddon being "Just around the corner" and then actually into my 20's and divorced at age 26, I really had a jolt. I'd gone clubbing, met a couple of likely looking girls, only to be devastated to be told that at age 26 I was "Too old" to be in there!
Suddenly I was in my 30's. My life was half over! I took up Judo again, got a nasty injury after not taking a fall correctly, and was asked by my doc if I realised that Judo was for younger men, not me. 40 came and went, then as I approached 50 my life suddenly improved.
Now, banks were courting me instead of harassing me. My car insurance decreased dramatically. The house mortgage became easier to find as time and inflation took care of debt problems. Her Ladyships income soared as she got her BA and then her MA. Foreign shores beckoned and suddenly I was preferring classical music to pop.
I ceased to worry about being popular. Family became more important than ever and I began to understand how loving one's children more than oneself really worked. Their was only one snag: I became aware that I was running out of time to enjoy it all.
The solution came with the arrival of our grandson, Charlie. A while back I was chucking him under his chin with him beaming up at me, when I realised that this is what it's all about.
My sons are now in their mid 20's, right where I was as 1975 approached. My eldest is even receding slightly. My replacements in this world are springing up all around me as my children have their children.
I don't much mind now that my hair ain't what it used to be, or that my knee aches after a days hard work that is now only 7 hours instead of 9. I'm just moving further along in the cycle from life to death.
And I feel just fine about that.
Englishman.