Elena was two in January; Carlene turned eighty-eight in August. These are the two people I spend most time with, so I'm reflecting on some aspects of their ages that I find particularly inspiring.
Elena doesn't like to be looked at or watched when she's in the flow of doing what she loves. When she's being scrutinized, she holds up her hand and says, "Don't look" or "I don't like it." At two, she's more interested in looking at the world around her than being looked at. Learning two languages at once, she already has a track in her mind that I wish I had--and it's fascinating to watch her move back and forth with ease between Spanish and English.
Carlene is amazingly youthful for her age--and she doesn't mind one bit when people express surprise to learn that she is eighty-eight! She walks three miles with a friend every morning at 5:45 and is disciplined about taking care of herself. One of the things I love most about her version of being 88 is that she's not particularly interested in interpersonal dramas. She gives wide berth. Whatever others want to do or believe is not judged. As she has often said, her life philosophy is "People are different."
Elena is fiercely independent. If offered help, she usually brushes it away with "I got it!"
Carlene is fiercely independent as well. She rejects infringements on her freedom--just as Elena does, just as I do.
Both express affection wholeheartedly. Both are lovers of all kinds of people. Both express appreciation for every little thing and make the giver feel that she's chosen exactly the right gift or word. They both run on the fuel of enthusiasm and delight.
If Elena falls down, she quickly says, "I'm okay,"--as in "No big deal."
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This weekend, Elena is getting an actual pony, no barn.
Carlene wouldn't want a real pony, but she always finds the metaphorical pony in the barn. She lives a life of gratitude and enthusiasm that inspires me every day.
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