Birthday Bashed

What's the deal with getting older?

Today, I had an issue come up with age. Now I won't say who or how or when or where and all names have been changed to protect the innocent, but I still need to get this out there. What's the deal with age?

Now I will start by saying that I'm not much of a birthday person. I love my life just the way it is now. I'm 27 working on 28 and not so happy about getting to 30. But when I get to 30 I'll cross that milestone and live with it. I'm fairly sure that I'm not going to be Mr. Mid-Life Crisis Guy and go off and buy a Porche 911 to relive some youthful desire. That being said here's my deal.

A friend of mine is having a birthday. He's a playful guy, always joking around, you know, your typical "fun person" to be around. He's approaching a bigger milestone than I. The Big Five-Oh (50), but he's not there yet. It's not his 50th birthday this year. So in a joking manner I say, "Happy 50th Birthday Jim, how's that old age treating you?" Again, it was in a very joking manner and I said even said a few minutes later that I was kidding, I said, "Ah Jim, I'm just messing with you, you know I love you bro."

Jim was not fine. Jim didn't care for my comment one bit. Jim was really hurt by my comments. Since, the birthday incident I have apologized for what I said and have told him that I would never knowingly hurt him. But as of this blog he's still not talking to me.

Maybe it's because I'm 27. Maybe I just don't get what working on 50 feels like. But to go off the deep end on a comment so small and meant in a joking manner caught me way off guard. I read a another blog recently and it had this statement: "May this be our epitaph, that we were faithful to the Lord and His Word, as we get older until the very end of our life on earth. It is better to wear out than rust out in the Lord's service. Christians should not detest getting older. As we progress through the Lord's school of discipleship, it brings us closer to graduating to that heavenly shore where there are delights with our Lord forever more."

I'm truly sorry for hurting Jim. I never wanted to and I hope he believed my apology. Blame my youthful ignorance if you must blame something. I feel really bad and I hope that Jim understands I never wanted to hurt someone I call a friend. Sometimes I have to learn things in life the hard way and I'll just chalk this one up under that life lesson plan section. But a verse I'll keep close to my heart when I reach Jim's age is this: "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness" (Proverbs 16:31). I think I'd look pretty cool with a crown and some silver hair. Kind of like in the flash back scene during "Return of the King" in the The Lord of The Rings Trilogy when you see King Aragorn all silver haired and kingly. Yeah. I'll take that.


Carlos