The Dreaded "A" Word
At the end of his last visit to Washington, D.C., Endo Sensei said that his wife told him to cut back on his oversea trips. "You are becoming an old man. Slow down!" Mrs Endo advised, according to Endo Sensei. "Am I really an old man? Should I slow down?" Sensei jokingly asked me. "No, no, no! Not at all, Sensei. You are very far from being old," I pleaded with Sensei. "You are still very energetic and capable. Please don't resign like that."
It is interesting that some people choose to respond to aging by slowing down, thinking an older person should not be ambitious. It is as if older folks are supposed to be done chasing their goals and dreams. Turning 50 makes me realize I am really running out of time. We all come with an expiration date, just that we don't know when it is. It can be any time. Whatever I wish to do, I need to hurry up and do more so that I do not regret.
In order to convince Sensei, I went on to share with him an inspiring encounter.
When my mother was here to visit, we went to the fabric store together. There were three clerks at the counter. Two of them were ladies in their 30s. The third one was an old lady, Irene.
Irene was a very petite lady whose face was covered with the most wrinkles in the world. We came to find out she was 94 years old. Despite her age and stature, she was the quickest, sharpest and the most efficient among the clerks. Flip, flip and cut. She got your fabric ready. Without needing a calculator, she did the math in her head as she was writing up tickets. Her young coworkers had a hard time keeping up with her. Her line was always the longest, but it moved so quickly that you were always better off going to Irene.
My mom was just approaching 70 at the time. She was fascinated by Irene and her sharpness. "When I get older, I'd love to be like her," my mom became Irene's admirer in no time. When it was our turn, I played interpreter so that my mother could talk with her idol. "Oh, you will get your chance, Kid," Irene assured my mom. "You know what my secret is?" My mom listened closely. "NEVER SLOW DOWN! Do what you can and keep going. The moment you slow down, you will lose it and become really old really fast. Just keep going forward and never look back!"
For that, I dash forward everyday.
It is interesting that some people choose to respond to aging by slowing down, thinking an older person should not be ambitious. It is as if older folks are supposed to be done chasing their goals and dreams. Turning 50 makes me realize I am really running out of time. We all come with an expiration date, just that we don't know when it is. It can be any time. Whatever I wish to do, I need to hurry up and do more so that I do not regret.
In order to convince Sensei, I went on to share with him an inspiring encounter.
When my mother was here to visit, we went to the fabric store together. There were three clerks at the counter. Two of them were ladies in their 30s. The third one was an old lady, Irene.
Irene was a very petite lady whose face was covered with the most wrinkles in the world. We came to find out she was 94 years old. Despite her age and stature, she was the quickest, sharpest and the most efficient among the clerks. Flip, flip and cut. She got your fabric ready. Without needing a calculator, she did the math in her head as she was writing up tickets. Her young coworkers had a hard time keeping up with her. Her line was always the longest, but it moved so quickly that you were always better off going to Irene.
My mom was just approaching 70 at the time. She was fascinated by Irene and her sharpness. "When I get older, I'd love to be like her," my mom became Irene's admirer in no time. When it was our turn, I played interpreter so that my mother could talk with her idol. "Oh, you will get your chance, Kid," Irene assured my mom. "You know what my secret is?" My mom listened closely. "NEVER SLOW DOWN! Do what you can and keep going. The moment you slow down, you will lose it and become really old really fast. Just keep going forward and never look back!"
For that, I dash forward everyday.
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