Old Hair

"Grandpa, do you have old hair?"
This question was heard at the breakfast table last Saturday. Emma, 4 years old, looked over at her grandfather and his grey hair with a puzzled look on her face. The grandfather was even more surprised at the funny question but kept his calm. I just laughed.

Because, I know that hair that short is not old. It's actually pretty new. But her question was ingenious. Greying streaks of hair are the obvious sign of getting old.

Arnfinn says he has come to the age of repairing. There are hurts here and there and things that need fixing from time to time. But how great it is to be alive and well enough - and able to still learn and do and feel.

The oldest man recorded is Methuselah in the Old Testament. The man died at the ripe age of 969 and I wonder how many children he had, how many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so forth. He must have experienced some aches and pains in his old age, too, like the rest of us. He probably had old hair.

A fish called rougheye and sea urchins can live 200 years, bowhead whales even longer. Several sea creatures are like that. A tortoise can be around for 250 years, while an elephant can be 70 years old. Dogs ages vary with the breed. A Great Dane can be around 6 years old while an Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, like Hector, can be 14. Add that seven times and you will have the actual age of the dog, human way of counting.

I am happy with the age I am right now. Next year I will be happy with being the age I will be then. Life is a learning experience no matter our age. We are never too old to learn, to understand, and to love.That's exciting.
I have no ambition of turning 250 like a tortoise, but I am grateful for the time I have.

Today's water color is a fairy boy. Fairies are depicted as young and lovely. How old are they really?