Recently, a new friend came over to our place. I call him a friend, even though we initially connected through a shared work project—and those rarely lead to spontaneous beers around the kitchen table. But with him, we hit it off quickly and dove enthusiastically into brainstorming, which soon turned into a casual conversation.
While discussing the creative work and sharing personal stories, something else became clear: my partner and I were almost 15 years older than our guest. Something I’d never felt so close before.
His very first sentence hit me right in the feels. As he stepped into the apartment, he looked around and honestly said:
“Wait, you guys actually have DVDs?”
That question carried it all: surprise, disbelief, and a hint of worry that maybe he’d wandered into a museum.
I tried to save face by explaining we did have them, though of course we don’t really use them anymore. But he was shocked we ever used them at all. Then I made the mistake of adding “we even had VHS tapes”.
He simply couldn’t believe it, and we started laughing at the look of disbelief on his face. We went on to explain how we used a pencil to rewind the tapes we carried around so we could listen to music on our Walkmans. Our young guest said only his dad would have done something like that. His dad! That’s when I took a big sip of my beer and suddenly felt a bond with all the adults who’ve ever started a story with, “When I was young...”
The surprises weren’t one-sided, though. Our young friend started telling us about dressing up as a Minecraft character for a carnival. I looked at him puzzled—my brain couldn’t wrap around the fact that Minecraft existed when he was still in elementary school. In my mind, Minecraft is still a “new thing” kids play, and I have nothing to do with it anymore. That’s the moment you realize time has quietly slipped by.
I Simply Felt Old
By the end of the conversation, I felt so old it was almost physical: like my lower back was starting to ache a bit. And yet, I was having a great time. We laughed. We thought. We worked. It was clear he enjoyed our company—not just sticking around out of politeness for another beer.
That was the moment I felt at peace.
Because aging is unavoidable. And that’s a good thing. Growing older is a privilege—not everyone gets the chance. Yet we often feel ashamed, deny it, or joke it away. The real question isn’t how old we are, but what we do with it. Do we retreat into our memories, or do we stay curious about how those who come after us see the world?
If we stay open, if we don’t just talk but also listen, age becomes an asset, not a barrier. Sure, sometimes it stings a little to realize we rewind the past with a pencil while they erase it with a click. But if we keep an open mind, age really is just a number. One that never gets in the way of teamwork, shared laughter—or even a beer.
