One of the items I check daily in the newspaper delivered to the house is the obituaries. As I've aged, and badly truth be known, I've measured myself against those who've shuffled off their mortal coil. I never evaluate the lives whose passing I'm reading and sentiments like 'So and So led a full life,' never are uttered as I have no idea how true or false that conclusion is.
Growing up I was always impressed with how old grown-ups seemed to be, especially in comparison to me. And when I look in the mirror now, I don't see a nearly seventy-three-year-old man staring back at me but when I come across photos of myself from 'back in the day' I'm stunned at how decrepit I look now.
Do you remember 'The Magic 8 Eight Ball'? I used to always ask 'How old will I get to be?' And the response was always, 'Answer unclear.' And then I learned our mother's trick, not just for that question, but any and all of them. Don't ask the question if you can't stand the answer.
So, that said, how do you feel about finding out how old you'll live to be? Remember, your mileage may vary and objects in the mirror are older than they appear.
-bill kenny
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