As I get older, I slowly see everyone around me getting older, too. When you are constantly around someone, you don’t really see too many changes in their appearances or actions. It’s like going nose blind to your own house; instead of not smelling the usual cat pee around your home, we don’t see the changes in people around us. It’s not until we look at old photos and videos of others that we notice all the changes and differences. Looking back at photos, I see myself as a cute little kid with no problems. I didn’t have to pay for gas, pay monthly dues to Sallie Mae, and I never had to think about my age and getting older. That was a later problem.
Now it’s later. My childhood pets are just photos on shelves, instead of being at the end of my bed. My new cat sits in the same spots my old ones used to lay. Even my new cat isn’t so new. She doesn’t jump as high as she used to. She doesn’t run as fast as I’ve seen her run. Her face is graying and her meows are softer. She’s gotten older and so has everyone around me. Not only are our pets getting slower, fatter, and grayer, but so are our family members. Can we take a moment to lighten the mood? I don’t want to talk about sad shit forever, but it really is the truth.
I’ve seen way too many obituaries over the past couple of years. Since the pandemic started, I feel like I’ve seen someone new pass away each month. It wasn’t always someone super close but it was a friend of a friend or someone’s grandparent. Everyone has had someone they know pass away. Losing a loved one is one of the worst feelings in the world. I had to deal with losing my aunt suddenly this past summer and I never want to feel that pain again. The worst part is that I eventually will have to. We all have to. As we age, so do our loved ones. Some of us in college are just starting to live our lives as others are beginning to slow theirs down.
I sometimes miss the family I used to have growing up. I miss sitting down as a family for dinner, as a family of six, and asking each other about our days. Now we scream at each other from our rooms as a family of four. It’s a bit of a change. It’s okay to miss people from the past even if they are still alive. Things aren’t always the same and it’s okay to think about the memories. While we grow, we mature. Some may lack in that area, so you move on. Are you still with the same friend group you had 10 years ago? Are your parents still together? People changing can be for better or for worse but it’s okay to miss the people you had at one point in your life. It’s all part of growing up.
