I keep seeing those TV commercials that show middle-aged men doing what must be considered middle-aged manly things while the spokesman announces, “this is the age of knowing what you’re made of.”
It took me a long time to realize those commercials are selling Viagra, and it will take me longer to understand what erectile dysfunction has in common with grubby looking cowboys, who appear to be stuck in the mud or stranded on the beach.
Although I’m not a man, a cowboy, or even dysfunctional, I am middle-aged, so I decided that maybe it was time to figure out what I’m made of, so to speak.
It wasn’t easy. Being well past the sugar, spice and everything nice phase of life, a fifty-something woman can’t rely on sexist nursery rhymes to jumpstart an exercise in self-realization. I decided to make it easy and lump my whole history of life and experience on this planet into two categories that reveal 10 things that, at my age, I know for certain about myself.
So this is the age of knowing WHAT I LIKE and WHAT I DON’T LIKE.
WHAT I LIKE:
- Children who like to be children
- Parents who behave better than their children
- Dogs
- Real paper books, magazines and newspapers
- Yellow flowers
- Laughing so hard it hurts
- People who still make you smile, even though they are suffering pain and tragedy
- Unconditional kindness
- Mountains and oceans
- Running to achieve my marathon goal time
WHAT I DON’T LIKE:
- Spoiled children
- Spoiled adults
- Snakes
- Four remote controls required to turn on a television
- Calling wildflowers weeds
- Crying so hard it hurts
- When people suffer pain and tragedy
- Prejudice
- Caves
- Running 16 marathons and never once achieving my marathon goal time
Now that I have a better idea what I’m made of, don’t ask me what product I can sell. I doubt any Jon Hamm-type is going to swoop into my living room with a bunch of daffodils and ask me to shoot a commercial for a feminine hygiene product. But this exercise in self-reflection has taught me something important. I may be middle-aged, but I’m not too old to learn.
In fact, the next time I run a marathon, I’m going to add an hour to my goal time.
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Please visit my website at http://annkhowley.com/#about-ann