Monday, June 28, 2010
Surprise.
The biggest surprise about getting older is that no matter what I've learned, no matter what experiences I've been though, no matter what my influences are, I still have the ability to make poor decisions, to hurt people.
The difference, though, is that with age comes realization. I now recognize when I've disappointed, when I've caused others pain. No logic or reason can undo what's been done. And so I become envious of twenty-something Jill. Barreling through life, she paid little attention to her affect on others. But now, she lingers, thinking about things that should have been forgotten long ago.
The biggest surprise about getting older is that no matter what I've learned, no matter what experiences I've been though, no matter what my influences are, I still have the ability to make poor decisions, to hurt people.
The difference, though, is that with age comes realization. I now recognize when I've disappointed, when I've caused others pain. No logic or reason can undo what's been done. And so I become envious of twenty-something Jill. Barreling through life, she paid little attention to her affect on others. But now, she lingers, thinking about things that should have been forgotten long ago.
