I miss the strength of my youth. When I built my house I was working at the local cannery, the night shift,
twelves hours at a time. I did that and built my house! My last term in college I took 27 credit hours, that is like two full student's full of work AND I did those same hours at the cannery. I got all "A's" and one "B"!
Oh I wasn't that smart. By then I had realized that the professor's didn't really want you to learn anything, certainly not enough to get sidetracked on any issue. I knew they just wanted me to spit it back at them and that is what I did. There have been classes where I got "C's" where I had learned far more. By my last term in college I just wanted to finish so I just did what was expected and got better grades for it.
When I was young I could lift huge beams, just put them on my shoulder and walk up the ladder. I have no strength like that now. The strength of youth is replaced by wisdom but I am not sure it is a fair trade.
Wisdom comes with caution and a particular loss of adventure. The horizon of life should be huge in your youth. I have travelled a thousand miles with two dollars in my pocket. I would go to Europe on a whim and like a rich man, stay for six months at a time. No agenda, no itinerary, just an amble, pausing as I liked.
This is the little MG I crashed! I told that story yesterday. |
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5 comments:
You have become the person you are now, because of what you were when you were young and learning and experiencing. So have no regrets Jerry, for your younger days have been responsible for what you are now. Enjoy whatever comes your way in the present, never look back with regret. Any day knowledge is more important than strength.
One is strong when young in order to get out of the trouble one's lack of wisdom may lead one to!
Mind you, judging from your posts, you were never particularly un-wise even when young - so you must be ultra-wise now!
Look at that hair, Jerry! I am with you on the loss of strength. I used to do gymnastics, get on the floor and play with the kids, run...Now my knees hurt and I'm hobbling most of the time. My weight has gone up (hard to face when always a slim person) and I can't play on the playground with the grandkids either (I tried it not long ago and fell off things twice and hurt myself!). I'm 51 and feel 81. And to stay on topic, something you said about gaining wisdom and losing strength. I think too that as I've gained wisdom, I've lost hopes and dreams. Yeesh. Maybe it is me and I'm just naturally melancholy. And appropriately enough, my security word is "aiged!"
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