Not many people want to admit their age as they get older. After about 3 decades, most of us avoid the big birthday celebration. We think: Let me stay 29 and holding as long as I can. Until recently, I felt the same. What’s to gain? Creaky joints, loose skin and poor vision add up to a dismal outlook. But there’s always an upside.
In fact, I found an upside to aging a couple weeks ago while reading an advertisement for my local grocery. As a safety measure for their older customers, the store reserves the first hour of the day for those over 60 years old to shop. My family thinks I’m a bit crazy, but I jumped on this opportunity. Now I do my grocery shopping during the ‘senior hour’ from 7-8 am on weekdays. Why not take advantage of my 61 years? The store is clean, restocked and not crowded.
This Covid 19 pandemic offers us the opportunity to reconsider and re-evaluate many things. Finding bright spots within the darkness is challenging sometimes. Yet even now there’s always an upside if we choose to look for it.
If not for the quarantine, cars would continue to crowd our roads as people travel to and from work. Now many are working from home by necessity. This empties our highways of traffic and has significantly decreased pollution in a number of our cities. Who would have guessed our air quality would improve so quickly?
Because of the mandate to remain at home, most of my immediate family (including myself) are working remotely. This offers us much more flexibility. With my sister in hospice, family is needed round the clock to attend to her. If not for the quarantine, this would be extremely difficult to accomplish. However, now that we work from our computers, this enables all of us to spend more quality time with her. For this, I am greatly thankful.
The Apostle Paul understood that there’s always an upside even within severe suffering and trials. While chained in a Roman prison, he wrote his letter to the Philippians. These words were penned not long before his execution.
My dear friends, I want you to know that what has happened to me has helped to spread the good news. The Roman guards and all the others know I am here in jail because I serve Christ. Now most of the Lord’s followers have become brave and are fearlessly telling the message.
Philippians 1:12-13.
Although Paul faced a dire situation, instead of letting it discourage him, he looked at it as an opportunity. Some of Paul’s most effective ministry happened during his most intense suffering. If not for his imprisonment, significant parts of our New Testament would never have been written. Nearly 2000 years later, we are still learning from this extraordinary man because he recognized that there’s always an upside.
No, I’m not 29 any longer. At that age, I had just started my first year in medical practice with 2 little girls at home and my son not yet born. It was a busy, exciting time. Nevertheless, God is teaching me to embrace each moment in my life and see opportunities no matter what my circumstances. There are wonderful benefits to being an older women when I consider it. I like to think I’m a little wiser than I was at 20 something and I have more time now to do the things I love like writing. I have one grandchild and another on the way.
Life is good even in the midst of quarantine and cancer. There’s always an upside. Always.
