I wrote a guest post for Scott McGlothlen at his blog. It was inspired by an eye procedure I had done last year, not long after my 54th birthday. The confluence of those two events got me thinking about getting older and my relationship to time. (And, no big surprise, there’s a Star Trek reference tucked in there, too.) Here’s a bit of it:
Time is written on my body not just in wrinkles and gray hair, but in scars both visible and concealed: The imperfection in my retina, soon to be scarred over. The knee that still aches after the meniscus was repaired at 50. The scar on the back of my leg where the dog pulled me off my bike at 44, and the scar along my left middle finger where I pried its jaw off my shoe. The tightness in my lower back from herniating a disc at 33. Cumulatively, these things serve as a reminder: of the need to adapt, to not do things the same way I did when I was younger.
They also remind me that I’m not going to be here forever.
You can read it here.