Last year on this day I started another decade. Another birthday with a zero at the end. Today I become a hexagenerian + 1. Alright.... I admit that I made up the term "hexogenarian," but it just seems to make sense. If an octogenarian is someone who is 80-89 years old, then someone who is 60-69 years old would be a hexogenarian.
The thing is, that even though I knew it was coming, it kind of surprised me. When I was in my teens, I figured anyone in their sixties probably had one foot in the grave. By my mid-twenties I recognized that most sixty-year-olds were not ready to keel over, but I still felt like their most productive years were behind them and that they probably just didn't really have a good handle on the new technological changes in the world. My parents turned sixty during my mid-thirties and by then sixty didn't seem nearly as old. I had two children of my own and marveled at how my mom and dad had been able to raise three kids that all graduated from college. They seemed to have their act together and were able to use their experiences to make wise choices while they retired, traveled, and pursued their passions. Dad worked on restoring cars. Mom volunteered, gardened, and spent time with her grandchildren among many things. At church, she often used her skills and abilities, like counting money or organizing greeters, but she also got out of her comfort zone and sang at nursing homes with a group of ladies. She frequently spoke of how she was busier at that time than when she was working.
So, what about me at sixty? Well, sixty obviously doesn't seem nearly as old now. And I must admit, I thought I would have my act together a lot better than I feel like I do right now. I have screws in my feet and titanium knees. I still have a penchant for sweets, especially chocolate, and love riding my bike. I no longer play baseball or softball, but I still love watching the game.
As for wisdom, that is an elusive quality. I am thankful that I am often able to spot a bad idea when it comes along, but I also recognize that I will probably continue to learn many things the "hard way." Hopefully, I won't have to learn the same hard lessons multiple times.
One thing that has surprised me though is how the amount of gray in my life has expanded. In my younger days, I seemed to be able to see life in a lot more black and white. As the gray hair on my head has increased however, so have many of my views. I suppose it is more of an attitude of tolerance or inclusion. Hopefully it has even more to do with what God is teaching me through His word. Lately "all" has been appearing in what I am studying quite a bit: "good news for all the people"(Luke 2:10), "God is Father of all, over all, through all, and in all."(Eph. 4:6) All those alls serve to remind me that God is interested in all of us: Red, yellow, black, white, Nazarene, Baptist, Catholic, Lutheran, Mormon, Buddhist, Muslim, heterosexual, gay, lesbian, liberal, conservative, and anyone else you can think of.
So, if God is the Father of all, then it stands to reason that any of those "alls" can also have a relationship with God, but it may look very different than what I am accustomed to seeing. Maybe then on this first day of my second year as a hexagenerian, my call is to embrace my gray and look for how we are the same. I recognize that there are some definite absolutes, but I am much better off when I remember that God's good news is for all of us and focus on what my part of His plan looks like.
Here's to walking in the good works that God has already prepared for me!!
