Not long ago, I was chatting with a friend about something far off but not unimaginable in the future. I asked, "You do realize we’ll be almost 50 by then, right?" His eyes widened at the thought, and after a pause, he asked, "Doesn’t that scare you?" I said, "No. What would scare me is if nothing happened until then."
For a while now—especially since becoming a parent—I’ve felt how days slip away as unnoticed as my coffee cooling in the morning. I take a sip and wonder: how did this happen? That’s what can scare me. Days flow through our fingers, and before we know it, the leaves on the tree outside the window start turning yellow again. We can’t even say where summer went—no memories to hold on to, just aging cells and bones that feel time passing, while our hearts find no trace of the days gone by.
I’ve long known our time on earth is limited, and I think I’ve come to accept that. At 37, I believe life’s value comes from its limits: if it never ended, our choices, love, and actions wouldn’t carry the same weight. We’d live countless lives and start over anytime we wanted.
But our time is limited, and we only get one life. The worst thing we can do is not live that one fully.
Not jumping into adventures because we think there’s still time. Not enjoying a rainy day because we’re waiting for sunshine. Not hugging our loved ones tightly as if our moments with them were numbered—because they are.
I’m not here to throw around clichés or empty motivational quotes. I know life isn’t always beautiful; sometimes it’s downright tough. Some days hurt deeply, and even when we do everything right, life can still hit us hard because fate isn’t fair.
That’s part of it too. That’s life, and it’s better than not living at all.
I’m not afraid of getting old. In fact, aging is a privilege not everyone gets. Am I thrilled about my deepening wrinkles or the first gray hairs? Let’s just say I don’t jump for joy in front of the mirror. But I try to stay open and curious. I try to appreciate what life has given me and what it still might, making the most of every day. Because the scariest thing isn’t growing old—it’s life passing me by. I want to grow old if there’s a reason to—and that’s up to us to create.
