I will turn 60 in less than a week! Wow Good God, me, 60?! No way!!! But yes, indeed, I will. I don’t feel 60; neither do I, in my opinion, look 60. But I will indeed be 60. Am I supposed to act or comport myself differently now?

Turning 40 was a big deal to me. Man, that was two decades ago! It signified to me the onset of “elder” status. After couple of years, the eldership status waned.

But the realization of being 60 began to seep in lately. I mused about really being in the elder status now. But I am often reminded by folks, who think that I must have had my daughters in my teenage years, how young I am. I had to remind some that I actually had them when my peers had stopped child bearing.

Recently, I was in conversation with a woman. She was amiable so we struck a conversation. Her first sentence was “I’m old enough to be your mama.” She boldly stated.
Me: “oh really, why do you say that?” Lady: “I’m 68 and you look quite young.”
Me: smiling “I see. I take it as a compliment.”
Lady: “so how old are you.”
Me: [ smiled some more ] till another lady joined and diverted our attention.

Similar conversations have been a constant in my adulthood. There are times I’ve wondered if my parents got my birth year wrong. But of course they didn’t. Except for certain specific records over the years, I would have doubted my age too.

According to such records as my school report cards, starting from kindergarten through primary and secondary schools, which are evidences of birth and age to have enabled me attended. Another record is my passport which was obtained by my beloved father shortly after my 18th birthday when I first left the country, Nigeria. Renewing the passport thereafter didn’t require any further proof but the expired passport. Again, something must have been produced as evidence of both age and birth to obtain the initial travel book. Whatever the evidence was, got lost, and I remembered that I had to swear to an affidavit once during the citizenship process. So I do solemnly swear that I will be 60 [ smile ].

I said all that to prove, to none in particular, that I will indeed be 60 next week. I’ve always been told that I look twenty years younger. Thank you. I don’t deserve it because it is a DNA gift that I can’t really take credit for. The feeling though is mine and I really don’t feel 60.

So what does turning 60 feels like and what is it about age anyways? My dictionary tells me that age “is the number of years that one has existed from birth.” And who’s keeping count of those number of years? Parents? Older siblings? Teachers? Community? Government? God knows. And what does it matter? My truth is that it really doesn’t. Except in certain instances where, for example, one has to prove adulthood in terms of alcohol, driving, or for other legal reasons.

“Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!”

Ingrid Bergman

How does turning 60 feel? Well, ask me next week and I might be able to tell you. For now, I am as old as I feel and I’m still trying to put a number to that feeling.

Like wine and cheese, the older I get, the better I have become. I won’t trade those years for any other place or thing. It hasn’t been a smooth ride all the way, but I am grateful for all the experiences over the decades; the good, bad, and ugly have all contributed to who I am today. All things worked, and are still working, together for my good.

Tons of lessons, of course, have been learned over the decades.

• Most importantly is that I have since figured out what’s important to me in life. I hope you figure that out too for yourself. The earlier you do, the less stressful you’d be chasing or worrying about things that don’t matter.
• Be your authentic self. There’s a reason God created you the way He did. Trying to be someone else robs you of your authentic self and makes you a counterfeit.
• Connect deeply with fewer people as connecting with everybody, trying to be a people pleaser and all things to everyone, often leaves one depleted.
• Smile and laugh more; it reduces those wrinkles.
• Take care of your body; it will take care of you later.
• Have fun along the way knowing that having fun doesn’t have to be expensive.

Hear what Oprah said about aging. That’s been my adulthood principle – to do things because I want to and not because I have to. I’m glad that I’m not alone in so doing.