I picked up my watch the other day and realized that the battery was dead. It had probably been dead for a couple of days and I just didn’t notice. It got me thinking about time and how much we are slaves to it these days. There is a clock in my truck, a clock on my television, a clock on my phone, a clock on my computer, a clock on the wall of my office. In fact, they seem to be everywhere (except in casinos and the great outdoors). Sure it’s important to be on time when we have appointments and obligations, but why do we place so much emphasis on time?  Have you ever been in “the zone” when you lost all track of time? It’s really a great feeling. Being totally focused on the task at hand and not thinking about the past or the future is the perfect place to be. We should all strive to stay in the now and let go of those worrisome thoughts about what we can’t change or what we’re going to do tomorrow or next week or next year. When we do that, we’re effectively giving up this moment and since our moments are short, I’m thinking personally that I want to enjoy each one as it comes. So, I decided to try an experiment and forego wearing a watch for now, just to see if I notice any difference. It feels a bit strange to not have one on my arm, but other than that, I don’t really think I’ll miss it. I’m thinking it must not have been terribly important in my day-to-day activities if I didn’t even notice the battery was dead. Besides, I’m choosing to focus on right now.

Technology is such a wonderful thing. I’m in love with my computer and all the possibilities it opens up in my life. I meet so many great people I would otherwise never have known. No matter that I haven’t been to their home or might not even recognize them if I passed them on the street. They have become a part of my life through the use of the technology called the Internet.  When I was a kid we still had party lines on the phone. For those of you who don’t know, that meant that the line was shared with someone in another household. If you picked up the phone and heard someone talking you politely hung up and waited for them to finish their conversation before you attempted to make a call. Now we not only carry our phone around with us, but we can access the whole world with the touch of our finger from wherever we are (dead zones excluded). Computers used to take up whole rooms and information was input into them by use of a punch card system by typing little holes into flexible cards that were then physically put into the computer. I realize here that I’m showing my age, but it’s important to realize how far we’ve come in such a short time. Although it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the enormous volume of information we’re inundated with on a daily basis, I for one consider myself lucky to have access to this amazing ability to communicate across oceans with people from different backgrounds and cultures. I’m grateful for new friends in places I’ve never been. As our world continues to shrink, we see more and more that we are not so different after all. Perhaps one day, this will lead us to embracing our diversity and creating a more peaceful world.

Do you ever put things away in a place you know you’ll remember, only to never see them again? Is this a sign of getting old or are we just too distracted in today’s world to pay attention to the important things? Are we so overwhelmed and bombarded with information that we only use part of our attention, therefore, not remembering? I remember my mother doing just that years ago. I laughed and said how can you not remember or find something that’s got to be there. It didn’t just get up and walk away by itself. Mom found it amusing at the time too. I always think about that incident when I can’t find something I’ve put away in a place I won’t forget. Lucky for me I’m a fairly organized person so I’m not prone to losing things often, but geez…when it happens it is a little disconcerting. Good thing for me I inherited Mom’s ability laugh about it. I have ultimate faith that it will eventually show up. So, being ever optimistic and always young in heart and mind, I vote for the distraction theory not the old age one. How about you?

I find it curious that the mind doesn’t age as fast as the body. At least it doesn’t seem that way to me. When I was younger I never imagined that old people didn’t feel old in their heads. For me, although my body continues to age and on occasion betrays me, in my mind I’m still 30. Why 30? I have no idea, but maybe it has something to do with coming of age. I still believe I can do all the same things I could then. It never occurs to me that my body disagrees until I try it, then I usually pay for it with aches and pains for a couple of days. When did I start to think that 9:00 or even 10:00 is a normal and reasonable bedtime? Shouldn’t I be able to stay up till all hours and function on minimal sleep? What happened to all that energy I used to have? I’m certainly wiser than I was at 30. At least I like to think so. I like to believe that I’ve learned a lot since then and am better for my past mistakes. They say age is just a state of mind and I agree. Now if I could just get my body to get on board with that statement...............

My father died last week. He would have been 90 years old on the 18^th of this month. I suddenly realized that since my Mom passed away in 2001 I have become an orphan. It doesn’t matter that I’m almost 60 years old.  I’m still parentless. When we lose our parents our world changes regardless of our age. A part of our living history is gone forever. We can’t call or drop by and reminisce or ask about great aunt so and so. If we don’t have the information now, it could be lost forever. What we do have, however, is a treasure trove of memories. Fond recollections of pieces of our past and a profound gratitude for the life we have been given. Even if your parents weren’t perfect, and I don’t think any of them are, two people have given you a most precious gift. Because they lived, you live. Celebrate your life and the lives of your parents. Make it count.