Time...it's inevitable I suppose. The seconds continue to tick by as the Earth hurls through space in its path around the sun. Time doesn't care that my boys are growing up at what seems like a blurry streak before my eyes. Nor does it care that I would like to be as strong, fast, and less doughy as I was in my twenties. I certainly don't think I'm old, but it's actually starting to seem like it could be a possibility one day. At first I let this worry me, but as it slowly becomes a reality, I'm noticing that the positives outweigh the negatives. There are the obvious things, such as having far more wisdom and a higher net worth than twenty year old Taylor, but one advantage went unnoticed until recently. A friend of mine, who is also thirty-one like me, and I went to play basketball this weekend. We walked into the gym and as I began to stretch and warm up, (definitely something my younger self felt was unnecessary) I looked around and began to take in our would be competition. They were sprinting effortlessly up and down the court, jumping with ease and recovering from twisted ankles with a slight grimace and about 8 seconds of "walking it off". As I looked on with envy, that slight pang, where you realize you aren't what you used to be, began to set in. At first, all my fears were confirmed. They ran circles around us as we panted and held the stitches in our sides. But after a while, without noticing, something strange happened. We tied it up. Then we pulled ahead. Finally we won the game. Me and the three other "old guys" on my team had sent these young kids packing. And it didn't stop there. We went on to win two more games in the same manner. The young guys would pull out to an early lead, we would adjust and they would continue making the same mistakes until someone would call out the score, and they would shockingly realize that they, again, had been beat by the "old guys". I was thinking about our victories on the drive home and I began to recognize that the wisdom of only an additional decade had a profound effect on all aspects of my life, not just basketball. I am more able to avoid the big mistakes and focus my efforts on the areas that deliver results. I pulled the truck into the driveway and slammed it into park, ready to run inside and tell Agnes about how we dominated on the basketball court. I was high on winning; high on wisdom. I threw open the door, jumped out and realized...I was lying on the grass. My exhausted legs had crumpled in protest as I exited the truck.
Oh, to be twenty again.
...
One thing that does not get better with age, is a dish washer. The old one came with the house, and while it was still functional, it was beginning to show its age. Luckily for me, my grandmother finally did something for herself and changed out most of the appliances in her kitchen. This meant that I became the proud owner of a like new, 4 year old dishwasher. If only I could find someone to help me install it.
Half way through the install, my other helper showed up. He's not quite as hands on as his older brother, but he will give you a two thumbs up, for a job well done.
Sunday we had dinner at Agnes's parents' house. What was on the menu this weekend? Pierogi, Polish dumplings, stuffed with a potato filling.
Notice how Noah is so excited about pierogi, that he is lovingly stroking Andrew's hair.
Agnes asked me to take the following picture because it was the most perfectly shaped pierogi.
After eating far too many of these delicious creations, Jadek and Andrew relaxed in front of a fire.
