Older Women

So much has been said and sung of the beautiful young girls. Why don’t somebody wake up to the beauty of old women? Harriet Beecher Stowe

The more I look in the mirror, the more I must acknowledge that I’m an older woman. I’m not sad about that, but gladly acknowledge that I’m in a new phase of life. I can’t do a lot of things I used to, and I tire more easily. At the same time, I feel no need to push the limits or sweat a lot trying. Exercise is good for us, but there’s no need for torture.

I decided to stop coloring my hair and let it go gray. I started coloring my hair in my 40s when the gray became very evident and I felt too young to have gray hair. I’m glad I did what I did. Now that I’m ready to face my age head-on, I’ve already been asked why I don’t want to look younger. Let’s just say I’ve watched my face age while my hair didn’t. It’s time for the two to match. Now that I’m a grandma, I’m very excited about looking like who I really am, a woman with two-tone hair. Gray in front and dark brown in back. The worst part of the transition is waiting for the gray roots to grow out.

Being an older woman brings lots of benefit with it. Gone are the days of trying to impress people with how I look. While I want to look my best, I don’t compare myself to Hollywood’s standards of beauty. No one should. Beauty is truly only skin deep. While plastic surgery has its beneficial uses, using it to “turn back time” doesn’t do that at all. Instead of making women look younger, it makes them look funny and fake and sometimes hard to look at. I like my wrinkles. They’re like a road map to my life. I’m thankful my life gave me enough blessings to leave smile lines behind and not frown lines.

Outwardly I am 83, but inwardly I am every age, with the emotions and experience of each period. Elizabeth Coatsworth

Life experiences bring true inward beauty and wisdom. Older women are really interesting people, full of stories and insight. We’ve walked the road of life, toiled along it, observed others on it, and learned from every turn and bump. We’ve seen a lot of sunshine and laughter on it. Without placing all our self-worth in how we look, older women aren’t afraid of time passing. It’s more about enjoying every day of the journey and less how it looks on us. We love to have fun, especially together. If you need advice, we have plenty to give. If you need a shoulder to cry on, ours are here.

The lady who taught my daughter and I how to clog was in her 70s and had a wonderful philosophy. “Every decade gets better and better,” she told me. “I look forward to seeing what each will bring.” The last time I saw her, she and her husband were dancing at their anniversary party, smiling like young kids. Both were in their 90s and enjoying the decade.

You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old. George Burns

So older women, appreciate where you are in life. Embrace it and value it while it’s here. The rest of you, appreciate older women. We’ve got a lot left to give. As it says in Proverbs 31, Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness. Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised (verses 26-27, 30, NKJV).

P.S. If you want to read a story about older women, read my book The Five Grannies Go to the Ball. Grannies just wanna have fun!