Baxter is getting older. He just had a birthday, and he is certainly out of the kitten and teenage phases of life. He is even beyond the youthful adult category. Baxter is a “mature” cat now. The signs of his mounting years are subtle but clear. He is much less feisty than he used to be. He gives into whatever I want him to do much more easily than in the past. He still doesn’t like getting flea protection each month or sticking to his diet, but he doesn’t fight it. He is docile and accepting of what he has come to know is part of life for him. He still gets around to explore and to chase bugs. But the number of these episodes has deceased as his years have increased.
While some things have diminished with the years for Baxter, others have grown more common. He is more affectionate and trusting towards me in his senior years. He lies on my lap and sleeps so soundly that he snores. This soon awakens both of us until we realize that the noise is harmless. Baxter rarely gets angry, really angry, any longer. He may nag to be fed or whine to have a door opened, but if he doesn’t get his way after a while, he just walks away and finds something else to interest him. Age has mellowed Baxter. It is easy to live with him now. Simple things— - a daily brushing, a scratch on the neck or belly, kibble, a clean litter box—are all it takes to keep him happy.
How well are we aging? That is something we may not think about often, but perhaps we should. The kind of person we become in our prime is what we take into our later years. Despite the wonders of modern medicine, we cannot replace the dominant parts of our character we have shaped through the years. An angry young man left to himself will become a resentful old man. A petty, sneaky, gossiping young woman can often turn into a complaining, crotchety busy-body in her later years. Our habits may take on a different form because age brings different circumstances and conditions to our lives, but once formed, they often remain set. So, if you are young enough to change your ways, think about it and act before the time has passed. If you are set in those ways, then pray for the grace to break a pattern of negative thinking and feeling about life.
In the later years of life, we must rely upon God more and ourselves less, if things are to improve. That is where our second chances arise, not from our own determination and ingenuity, but from our trust in the power and fidelity of God to save us. We age with grace when we quit trying so hard, whether we’re trying to control our lives and others, to impress others with ourselves, or to get ahead of them so that we don’t have to serve them any longer. We age with grace when we allow God and those we love in God to offer help, advice and care. We age with grace when we quit trying to prove ourselves to God and others, and instead, trust that they will love us for who we are, warts and all. As we get older, we need to invite God to take us to Himself as we are and show us how He loves us more than we ever imagined.
"Late have I loved Thee, Beauty ever ancient, ever new." Saint Augustine wrote these words in his Confessions to describe his regret when he finally discovered faith. It is never too late to love God, or better, to allow God to love us. It is how we age with grace, how we can grow despite ourselves, how a youthful old age is possible. Ever ancient, ever new, forever with God.
