"Well, At Your Age" and Other Signs of Aging

My gynecologist was the first one to say to me, "Well at your age..." I was 37 and was sharing my frustrations about my menstrual cycle. Beyond the phrase "Well at your age", she really didn't have much else to say. And "Well at your age" certainly wasn't very helpful. I can remember walking out of the appointment completely incredulous that she would have the audacity to imply that I was somehow "old" at 37 years of age.

But I knew that aging was creeping up on me. I mean, I had noticed that there were a few little lines around my eyes. I had some sun spots on my face and arms. Cellulite that could be toned and burned off when I was in my 20's had become stubborn and unwilling to melt away.  I wasn't living in denial that I was getting older. I just wasn't ready for someone to be so blunt with me that day and shine a flashlight on the fact that I was closer to 40 than 30.

Now it is 6 years later. I'm 43 years old. And now when things creak, pop, or wrinkle I find myself saying "Well at your age..."

I had a few of those moments today.

First up, this morning's experience. I had some pants that I needed to get hemmed. So I found Katelyn's sewing kit, got out the needle and thread and discovered...I couldn't see to thread the needle. ARGH! The dreaded far-sightedness of aging eyes apparently is beginning to set in. If I am wearing my contacts, doing such tasks of threading a needle or affixing the clasp of a necklace is an effort in futility. There, I admit it. "At my age...far-sightedness is a common occurrence."

I didn't get the pants hemmed. Instead I opted for using safety pins to hold the hem in place.

So I was still absorbing that "Well, at your age" moment when I had another one. I was looking in the mirror at my outfit for the day. I thought it was pretty cute and worked. It was the slacks, a nice shirt and a cardigan.

A cardigan.

I realized this morning that somewhere a long the way a cardigan has become my go-to "finish off an outfit" accessory.

A cardigan.

Doesn't that scream "old"? It did to me this morning.
Tonight I tried to shake the "Well, at your age" thing as I was shopping. My friend was hosting a LulaRoe party. This company sells mostly maxi skirts, dresses and leggings. As I was trying on the different skirts all I kept hearing myself say is "Yeah, these don't work for you. Maybe if you were 10 years younger, but at your age..." And I definitely didn't try on any of the leggings. I would have to be 20 years younger to get away with those.

But "old" didn't win tonight, well not completely. I bought 2 skirts. But as I was leaving all I could think was which cardigan would go with which skirt.

"Well, at my age" some habits are hard to break.