Getting Older And Getting Better

How To Live Long and Live Well

I recently confronted a bit of a dilemma. I was asked to leave a pickleball group because I wasn’t up to their standards.

Ok, it was only my third game. And I hadn’t stepped on any sort of court for about a decade. Maybe a bit more. And in the interim, I’ve had 2 hip replacements. It’s fair to say that I don’t move quite as well as I once did. But I was hitting some good shots. Winning shots.

But then I got to thinking.

I recalled from my tennis days how I hated “playing down”. I could certainly appreciate that.

I really lacked the strategy necessary for a competitive game at this level, at this point in time, with just 3 games under my belt. Winning shots, yes. Winning strategy, not yet.

And all these women were at least 10 and more like 15+ years younger than me!

The latter really hit home. I’m 67 years old (how did that happen?) I seemed to have a serious gap between my perception and the reality of my wannabe pickleball game.

And it made me wonder, just what is it that I want out of this?

Did I really want to play with that competitive a group? I did that in USTA tennis and the higher I went, the less fun I had. My primary goal here is to have fun. And I might just have more fun at an easier level of play.

Do I want to try to go back to my pseudo-glory days on the court or go forward? Since there’s no going back in time, going forward really is the only option.

And maybe, just maybe, it’s time to take a different look at things.

Letting go of that need to compete feels liberating. I could actually play just for fun?

Prioritizing people over points feels right to me. This is something of a revelation for the competitive me.

Now that doesn’t diminish my desire to get better. But better than what? Is just better than yesterday good enough? Do I need a ranking to tell me if I’m having fun?

How we age encompasses many factors, but one of them is our own mindset. How can we adapt, mentally and physically, as our bodies age? What are the benefits of aging? (Hint: there are many!) What can we learn?

I just published two podcasts touching on this topic: Chris Cornell, who at age 51 decided to lose weight and really get into shape; and Caroline Paul, a life long adventurer who shows that women, aging and adventure are a natural combination. Caroline challenges the societal view of women becoming diminished with age. You’ll want to listen to her thoughts. They just might rock your world.

Chris Cornell

Carolyn Paul

The combination of my pickleball experience and these two recent podcasts have caused me to shuffle the podcast release schedule a bit. Let’s stay on the topic of aging. How are people handling it with aplomb? What can we learn from them?

So, up next are James Flaherty and Mariann Aalda. Both are handling aging with enthusiasm, grace and accomplishment. Just wait til you hear their stories! James will be out later this week; Mariann early next week.

While you’re waiting, ask yourself, are you having fun yet? If not, what are you waiting for?