Counting Joys

When we're young it's important and it's easier…we cannot make a mistake…if we want to know how old we are…we count the candles on our cake. As we grow older…we may still have candles…but when it comes to the amount…unlike when we were children…we pay less attention to the count. By the time you reach my age…69…you're just glad that you're not dead…and you've stopped counting candles years ago and started counting joys instead. For one of the blessings of getting older is knowing it's our joy and not our age that's paramount…and, if we're lucky, we've had so many joys in life…that, just like the candles…we long ago lost count. I suppose that's why the older we grow…with each birthday we find ourselves looking back at memories of our friends and family members…and it's never our age we think about…it's the joys that we remember. So that's what I'll be doing today…thinking back to when I was just a boy…and of the 69 years I've been alive…remembering all the joys. And looking ahead to another year… wondering what new memories I'll make and what joys will join a lifetime of joys… next year… when they place another candle on my cake.