You’re ONLY too old when you’re dead

Morning!

So nice of you to swing by my site today; hope the past few hours have been treating you well!  Me, well, gee….yesterday was my  beloved Adult Karate where I kinda sorta went a wee bit bananas by the end in trying the techniques demonstrated. 

So much to learn; I’ve finally internalized circular sweeps (the good news!  yay!) but try to use them when NOT necessary (the bad news!  wah!).  But still, class was awesomely enjoyable indeed.

Minor bragging note for me – I can now execute a front split to approximately 1 inch off the ground!  ‘Twas way better than what the kid who regularly clocks me with round-house punches during sparring could do.  Hah!  I have ONE (count it – one!  Wheeeee!) area of superiority!  🙂

Oh that took soooo long to achieve – I’ve been practicing it every few days at home. 

It’s true, what they say – the more you use your muscles, the better they respond.  ‘matter of fact, even though just about every black belt is still ‘way faster than me, I can definitely see profound improvements in my own speed/balance.

Took long enough, I’ll tell you that!  🙂  But I digress.  Onto today’s topic!

Over the past couple of weeks, I realized that the only general karate/martial arts practice I get is the one I make up for myself at home.  So not only have I been devising a series of workouts for myself, I’ve also intrigued the kids enough that they pounce on me at random intervals and invite me to spar with them.  Thus, at any time (say, while making breakfast or waiting at the school bus etc.) I might experience being swooped upon by 1 to 4 kids, being swung at by my eldest etc.etc.etc.

Let me tell you, character-building….this certainly is.  🙂 

I’ve learned quite a lot by this exercise, such as "blocks that keep on traveling after the fist passes leave you completely wide open for the next punch".  Golly now, ya think?  

After yesterday’s pounding by my kids and that joyful evening class, I returned home and took an inventory of my somewhat pummeled body.   It was then that I realized:

Even if you’re considered too old by the general population to indulge in various and sundry activities…..what everyone else thinks is irrelevant IF you yourself know how to both pace yourself while challenging your boundaries at the same time.

I’m happily tackling my 40s but when I look back over the years since my college….gosh, I wish I knew then what the wisdom of my life has taught me today!  Youth really IS wasted on the young – you never appreciate what you have until it’s been taken away from you.

While probably muscle-wise, I had better potential in my 20s, I never took advantage of that!  It’s only been this past year or two that I’ve really internalized the following:

Inner-spirit wise, wisdom-wise and health-wise….I completely blow away the person I was then.  And that would have never happened if I didn’t give myself permission to excel in an area from which most women my age would shy away.

In other words, you’re NEVER too old to dare to be different!

This is something I really hope to pass on to my kids.  Heck, my parents are in their 80s….and to this day, they still demonstrate curiousity and excitement that you’d expect from folks ‘way ‘way ‘way younger. 

Age really is just a number!  Sure, you have to modify what you do to suit your own physical condition, and what probably leaves you gasping for air might not cause the 20-somethings to break a sweat, but heck….who cares!

So….if you have an insane desire to try something new, to be bold, to be daring, to flaunt your rear at modern day conventions and declare, I can DO this……all I have to say is:

Go For It!

You’re proactively making your OWN life better.  And can only be described as a Very Good Thing Indeed.  🙂

Enjoy,

Barbara Ling

ps – speaking about aging: