“Used to…”
When I visited my father in his “senior living” situation, he told me he knew when a resident started the conversation with “Used to…” that he was in for a boring trip down memory lane of how the talker “chose” to remember his past.
It got me thinking. Was I at the point of looking back on how things “used to be” more often than looking toward the future?
At first glance, the lists below seem disproportionate, but not really. I’m not in that much of a hurry to get where I’m going, so walking carefully up (or down) the stairs is easier on my knees than bounding up two at a time. I suppose I could still drive a sports car, I’m just not sure how long it would take me to get in and out.
Do I miss somethings on the first list? Definitely. But those specifics are mine to mull over (or not). With age comes wisdom? I’m not so sure, but there’s enough material in each of our pasts for reflection and enough time in the future to make the “Now I…” list more exciting.
Anyway, you get the idea. Try making your own lists (on not). I guarantee the next time you hear the words “used to” it will give you pause.
I used to –
- go up steps two at a time.
- drive a sports car
- eat pizza at midnight
- eat cookies without guilt
- sleep through the night
- be a brunette
- dance
- work all day and play soccer at night
- ride my bike for a hundred miles
- have sex 5+ times a week
- weigh 135 pounds
- wear high heels
- bite my nails
- play flute
- wear tailor made suits
- go to the circus
- critique movies
- remember everything
- have a three-octave range
- laugh more
- hear everything
- see everything
- worry about everything
Now I –
- take time to read
- walk the dogs for exercise
- write “Thank you” notes
- play ukulele
- watch movies for fun
- paint my nails
- sing with a jazz group
- don’t get on the scale
- wear comfortable shoes
- write what I want
- talk to my sister more often
- see with the help of glasses
- remember things at the oddest times
- worry far less (Alfred E. Newman was on the right track).