Am I What?

Are you a glass half-full or half-empty kind of person?  For the most part, I’m a half-full kind of guy.  I tend to look for, and even expect, the best in most situations, to see potential and possibilities instead of weaknesses and barriers, and to notice the roses among the thorns.  At least I try to. I also like to laugh and I think we all should lighten up a little bit and look for the humor in everyday situations.  The Bible says that a cheerful heart is good medicine (Proverbs 17:22).  That’s good to know since I have arrived at the age where medicine—and the purveyors thereof—are becoming more and more a part of my life. 

I recently went to a doctor’s office I hadn’t been to before and had to fill out the obligatory forms.  They were really nice and sent me a packet in the mail to fill out in advance so I wouldn’t have to do it in the waiting room.  I spent over an hour on that packet in the comfort of my recliner.  At the office, I turned the packet in at the desk and then had nothing to keep me occupied for the next hour.  Once I was escorted back to the exam room, a lovely young medical person spent the next 30 minutes asking me most of the same questions I had answered on paper already.  It was all worth it, however, when she looked at me with a straight face and said, “Are you over 40?”  

Bless her!  She didn’t have to ask that question.  She could have answered the question correctly by just looking at my white-whiskered face. I told her how nice she was to ask.  She told me she had to.

Fast forward one week and I had just finished a check-up at another doctor’s office.  I stopped by a grocery store that I like since I was in the big city for the day.  At the check-out line, the young lady who was bagging my groceries began making small talk.  She asked what I was doing for the day.  I told her I was just out running around.  “Are you retired?” she asked me.

Am I what?  Seriously?  Only a few days earlier someone actually had to ask me if I was over 40!  I hope that whipper-snapper enjoys sacking groceries, because her observational and conversational skills are not conducive to career advancement!  

Actually, I thought it was pretty funny and I enjoyed the interaction.  I’m really not interested in slowing the aging process or trying to look younger than I am.  But I am interested in demonstrating to every generation the joy that comes in knowing that your life matters to God. 

Mrs. Sweetie and I were talking to a teenager at church a few days ago.  We said something about being old folks.  She told us, “Yeah, but you’re cool old folks.”

Am I what?  Yeah, more than half-full.