It’s my day off, so I decided to get my errands out of the way and enjoy the rest of my day. I went to the grocery store at seven. Nobody was there! Finished in record time! Then I went to my favorite neighborhood café for breakfast. It’s a place where the locals hang out, and by locals, I mean people who have probably lived here their entire lives.
It’s an older crowd, and when I say older, I mean the average age of most of the patrons is around seventy…which makes me the local spring chicken…although I do qualify for the senior discount. Cha-ching! I’ll take it!
While waiting for my food, I looked around the room at the other diners, and caught snippets of their conversations. (I’m not snooping…they talk REALLY LOUD) One lady was telling her friend about another “scandalous” friend who had taken a part-time job doing phone sales because she found retirement boring. One day, the scandalous friend talked to a gentleman that she found interesting (and vice versa), They decided to meet at the park for lunch. She was there the next day in a red dress. He did not show up. She apparently took it in stride, and moved on. But a week later, she thought about him again and decided to give him a call. She called information, his number was listed, so she called him. A woman answered the phone. It was his wife. She said her husband had died the week before. Wow!…better than TV…
Anyway, I looked around the room at the other diners, and I noticed that most of the ladies dye their hair. How do I know? Trust me on this one. But the thing that I find curious is, dying their hair seems to be the ONLY thing they’re doing to look younger…AND…their hair color and style look to be the same color and style that they’ve probably had since they were in high school.
My question is, are they dyeing their hair because they’re trying to look younger, or is it just out of habit? I ask this question, because for the most part, they are overweight, out of shape, and seem to have little desire to dress with any kind of younger style.
I know this sounds judgmental, but I’m not judging…it’s just an observation. I found myself mentally making them over…the way I redecorate other people’s homes in my head when I visit…and I came to the conclusion that, if they would exchange the biscuits and gravy for the oatmeal with blueberries, get a little exercise, un-dye and loosen up their hair a bit, and let me take them shopping for an outfit that didn’t make them look like a sack of potatoes…they would look fabulous! Right now, they just look and act so “old.”
I’m reading Jim Donovan’s book, “Don’t Let An Old Person Move Into Your Body,” and I wholeheartedly agree with his concept that we should challenge the myths of aging…that we don’t necessarily have to deteriorate as we get older. I just want to tell these ladies, “C'mon, let’s get moving…let’s get saucy…let’s show a little attitude!
I’m not suggesting that they go the “dye/botox/lipo” route. Frankly, it’s too late for that anyway. I’m just saying, “put a little more life into your life! I’m with the scandalous friend…put yourself out there…wear a red dress…meet a guy in the park for lunch!
And on that note…I’m outta here! The weather is fabulous, and I’m going to the park!
C
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