Bragging Rights

I used to notice that as women got older they started talking about their age. Now I am proudly right there with them. Every couple of years, I succomb to the allure of the Lancome ad that promises a free gift if we spend enough, and yesterday found me at their counter in Belk's. Another woman arrived about the same time as I, and she cheerfully offered to the heavily made up, slim young clerk, "Let her go first. She's younger than I am." Gee . . . I hadn't heard that for a while. The woman then looked toward me and began a conversation that started with, "I'm seventy-six," like in how could I ever believe she was that old. As prompted, I complimented her on her youthful appearance, but there was more. Her inner being showed through, and I knew she was still loving life at least as much as she always had. These upbeat, active older women are an inspiration to me as there are fewer and fewer people we can find for wisdom or role modeling as we age. And just maybe we brag about our age because of what we went through to reach it, and we know we have come through it all to see the sun still shining.