A Joyous Perspective on Falling: It's all about the getting up.

It's Friday, and time for another Friday Night Thought Tale Hour with the Hendersons.  I turned 60 at the beginning of this month. Wow. I can still recall other significant milestone birthdays so clearly, and how I often looked ahead to 2020, the year I would turn 60. It seemed so far away during those times, but this year, I found myself considering 90, and not feeling that it will be that slow of a journey getting there. How can that be? I realized right then and there that - 

Our perspective on aging becomes more realistic with each passing year. 

You know that little feeling of dread, concern or wonder you feel as you approach another 'big' birthday? Well, it's not a fear of getting closer to death, it's really an appreciation for your age. Reality is setting in. You are truly a human filled with a lot of experiences and responsibility for what you've learned.

So whatya gonna do 'bout that?

Every passing year signifies that you have supposedly learned some things, and those around you suspect you should respond in kind. It doesn't mean you lose your childlike wonder and love for fun. You don't have to become stoggy and stagnant. In fact, I am often found doing the exact opposite of this. However, you should have some stuff to pass along to the youngsters around you at this point in life. And as I walked along with Eddy on the morning of my 60th year...

I stepped on a large stick and found myself falling.

Those that know me well also know that this is not a rare occurrence. In fact, my nickname as a child was often "Grace", meaning the exact opposite. Just a week prior, I had fallen hard in my husband's hospital room, surrounded by a group of friends. So two falls in one week, possibly a new record. However, here's the good news...

Neither fall produced a significant injury.

In fact, in both situations, I was able to get up and stand on my own. The one on my birthday was of particular note, as I actually rolled and got right on my bottom. Eddy was even amazed. So why am I waxing poetic about old lady falls and the outcomes?

Because I think I've learned that falling isn't something to fear. It's the possibility of not getting up that is the potential detriment.

Yes, I'm a faller. I've rolled down some pretty big mountain tops, and I've collapsed at some of the most seemingly strong points in my life. Sometimes I was tripped. Sometimes I was pushed. But more than often, it was my own lack of attention or action that caused the plunge. When you've done this often, you can start to become overtly careful and fearful. You begin to think that no matter what you do, the next step could produce a toppling that will really be painful. And that fear can even stop you from taking steps, considering a risk, or climbing a peak in life.

So you have to get really good at preparing and being ready for any kind of fall. 

I heard a sermon last Sunday about how being ready was better than being prepared, and it made me think of my propensity for falling. It's not the knowledge you might fall that makes you able to get up faster from the splat, it's the ways you've made sure you

are ready if that happens. And as you age, you learn better and more lasting ways to be ready, or you just give in to deterioration. 

I'm not ready to give in to any of that. How about you?

So tonight, Chris and I will be drinking something I call, "I've Fallen and I Can Get Up". We will toast to rolling through the cascades of life, and finding ourselves refreshed from the experience. Here's to all of your future falls, and your tremendous rises from them. Cheers.

Joy's I've Fallen and I Can Get Up Cocktail**

2 oz of Titos

1/2 oz of Grand Marnier

2 oz of Orange Juice

1 splash of Ginger Ale

Pour all into a shaker. Pour into a rimmed martini glass. 

**Drink responsibly