The inevitability of getting old

Opening my cupboard this morning a large portion of what had been crammed in there since I moved last year fell out.
This consisted of heaps of books (literally heaps.. 40-odd textbooks ALL OVER MY FLOOR) amoung other things.
Pissed off I abandoned the mess thinking to myself I would clean it later.
Hours passed until a couple of minutes ago when I turned around and, within the mess, saw an old photo of my Mum, my brother-in-law and myself.
I looked at the old snappy, looking at myself at 10 or so, making the photo around ten years old, and realised how i've changed.
I then proceeded to look at my Mum and Bro-in-Law.
Both looked A LOT younger than they do now and I started to think.
Not only am I getting old, something both me and my friends have been trying to come to terms with recently, but so is everyone else around me.
Now i'm worried.
I do not in any way like the inevitablity of those things that occur when we get old.
People we love die, people we love get old, people we love change.
Am I the only one deeply... upset by these things?
I'm only 20 but already i'm dreading those things that WILL occur as I age.

Just a thought.
PEACE

I think a lot of people feel the way you do. Deep down I know that I do, I just don't acknowledge those feelings. I'm not really afraid of getting old in terms of my physical strength or mental health, i'm more afraid of being alone when i'm old. What scares me even more though, is that in about 20-odd years my parents will be in their sixties and seventies and will be dealing with everything that older people have to deal with. My biggest fear is that they will be lonely, they will have each other, but it won't be the same. I don't want to just leave them and visit them every so often, i'll try and be a dedicated son I say this now, though who knows...

ahhhhh i have been freaking out about this topic for a while now as my son approached his ninth birthday not so long ago (i have mentioned this a few times though already) he concept of having a child that is HALFWAY to EIGHTEEN freaks the crap out of me....what does this me and and how old does this make me? it doesnt seem that long ago that i was eighteen myself and in three weeks time i am turning 26 which means i am closer to 30 then 20 and am now going to be in my late 20's rather then my early 20's and that also freaks me out to the max!!! i'm especially confused about it because i don't feel old enough to have a child of that age already (and i'm not really considering he was born when i was 16) but it's mainly due to the fact that i feel 16 not 26!!!!

meh...fuck it...age is an attitude and your only as old as you want to be i guess

fairies and pixies don't age and get older anyway for they are forever in never never land

i wonder if acid has permently affected my thinking sometimes when i am in a constant forest fairytale story in my head hehehe

I get you Killing_time..

I have noticed that among my friends we are all going out to restaurants more often, everyone has facial hair.. some have full time jobs.

This all really sprung up on me.

I am only 21 but my parents are approaching 70 quickly and I am terrified about it. I don't want my parents to fade away in old age. It really frightens me.

Time really does go so fast. Hell, I am already pretty much 1/3 through my life.

And according to everyone it was the best third.... it just downhill for the next 66%..

DAMMIT.

Now I am depressed.

^^^The best third of your life is the third where you find yourself. That can happen at any age. Hell, maybe it's only a couple of days, maybe it's forever. The point is, everyone's different and everyone's experiences are gonna be different.

Sometimes I take a step back and realise; I have a sister who is over 40, my youngest nephew just started high school and I still remember when he was born like it was a few months ago. My niece is an adult, and has been with her partner for a few years now. They're buying a house together.

What makes you old is not the physical process of aging...it's when you abandon who you are to worry about who you should be. I wanna be one of those old people who are still at clubs, not because they want to be young and cool, but because they want to enjoy themselves. I love those old people, they make me realise there's something to look forward to.....experience AND a good time.

killing time are u my alter ego? i swear ill b thinking about sumthing for a day or 2 and then i come on bluelight and u hav posted a thread about it. this has happened at least 5 or 6 times, i think. even titty thought i was ur alter ego and now u seriously hav me wondering, hmmm do i actually come on bluelight late at night and post stuff under anuvva name. 8(

i think about this quite a bit actually... i hate the thought of getting old... and it doesn't help with my mum yelling at me to 'appreciate the fact that you're young! i've got five good years left! five good years before i wither away to become an old woman!!' she's 50...
even when i see my nana and poppa now... not only do they look alot older and different, but every day for them is the same.
the scariest part i think is when you get to the age where you have to start preparing for death. or not exactly prepare, but accept that it's so much closer.... look back on your life and hope that you've done everything you wanted to do...

which is why i should probably stop thinking about this and make the most of my younger years. but yes... it is absolutely inevitable, as is death and argh... freaks me out a bit 8(

I always find it funny when kids the age of 20-21 are getting their panties in a bunch about getting old

I'm 29 in a week, and I feel like I've only just begun.

Admittedly I had my own panic attack about this in my early twenties - maybe it's not so much about "growing old" but more about saying goodbye to your youth.

Once you've accepted the fact, life gets a lot easier. Since my mid-twenties I've actively embraced the ageing process and now I can't *wait* to see what my 30's and 40's will bring. I know I'm a helluva lot more self-assured and confident, and if that continues, I'm gonna be SUPER CONFIDENCE WOMAN by the time I'm 40!! *busts out in leotard with SCW on the front* It's the pay-back you get. It's nice

These days 30 is like the old 20, 40 is like the old 30; we have so many more choices and options. There's no need to rush to get a mortgage, start a family or succeed in your career - and there's certainly no need to "grow old" in relation to your age number

killing_time:
this is another great topic you have posted (the other was your "mates" post).........
i am feeling exactly they you are about both of these topics!!
i really dont have much to say, other than, your not the only one mate!!

It's good to know.

i'm a natural pessimist, so things like this really get me down too. jesus, i still look at shaquille o'neal as a rookie - i saw him referred to as a veteran a year or two ago and it just freaked me out.

and yep, everyone's getting real jobs, i've got a car (!), and i always intended to have a career by now. fuck, i'm twenty, and i haven't achieved shit

so yes, k_t, i identify totally with what you're saying.

I think my BF gets really upset at me sometimes when i go on and on about how i dont want to get old and age, it upsets me so much. Not so much to die but more to be old and unattractive to EVRYONE.

But then again we are only young so we should enjoy it while it lasts, and it wont last..

"Live Fast. Die Pretty"

this is exactly why i'm getting my ass into gear and embracing all of life's opportunities.... also seeking to create my own opportunities... u can only be an introverted recluse for so long... may the remaining 8 years of my 20's be fulfilling....

i rekon for most things to appreciate them properly u have to of done them b4. wat i woodent giv to go back to kindy. then i was like i wanna b old so i hav freedom and do wat i want. right now i wanna finish skool n hav a car but then ill wish i cood go bak to skool n muk around n not worry about working

^^
So very true my friend.
I look back to those days in not-so-high school when I was ACHING to be at uni and goin' out and shit and think 'what the fuck was I hoping for?'
I think back now and I see "the good ol' days" where it was 9 - 3.15, drug free and happy (where'd that go ) and fit as a fiddle.
The daily plan was whatever the teachers proposed.

Nowadays it's go to uni all day and go to work.
All I have to look forward to is the weekend.. and Wednesday nights.

The moral: Cherish your time while you have it!

Raz, that post of your's really opened my eyes just now.

Raz said:

What makes you old is not the physical process of aging...it's when you abandon who you are to worry about who you should be.

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Yeah!
FUCK YEAH!!!!

I gotta admit I had issue's when I turned 30 - issues of not having achieved what I should have achieved for someone my age - I've been slowly working through these and I've come to terms wit hthe fact that life is what you make it, no matter what your age. 2.5 years into my 30's and I'm now enjoying it

Aishas Star said:

I think my BF gets really upset at me sometimes when i go on and on about how i dont want to get old and age, it upsets me so much. Not so much to die but more to be old and unattractive to EVRYONE.

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Judging by your photos, I don't think you will ever be unattractive chickie. But yeah, I can totally relate. I hate the thought of not turning heads when I'm older, of men not being interested in me, hell women even, how I look is important to me, shallow as that is.

The other things that scare the living bejesus out of me are being sick, not being able to look after myself, losing control of my body, being in pain and dying. As a nurse, I've seen older people with absolutely no quality of life who are at the mercy of doctors and nurses who are too young to understand what its like to be old and frail - don't get me wrong, most are very kind to their patients, they just can't relate to them. I'm always kind to my patients, have a special fondness for the older ones; firstly because I think a lot of older people are interesting amazing people and secondly, because I believe in karma. One day I'll be old and in the same position.

Getting old is one of my greatest fears and not something I enjoy thinking about very much.

Raz pretty much summed it up.

Aging is inevitable, but looking at it from another perspective, it is merely a physical process. Yes aging might make certain activities somewhat a little more difficult to achieve.

I'm sure it is a thought almost everyone, if not all, are sometimes quite upset by such thoughts especially if you are one who starts wondering what comes next after death. I used to fret about the thoughts of getting old, I still do sometimes. Now when I think, getting old is a journey, just like life - so make the most of it because everything will be over if you get too upset over it. And that'd be a waste.

As it was said in "Dead Poets Society" - Carpe Diem. Give the worry over getting old its due, but don't fret too much about it - there's too many beautiful things in Life to do so.