My family and I had stopped to eat at a fast food place before we went grocery shopping the other day. I had my daughter order while I went to the restroom. When I got back she told me the amount and I went to the counter to pay. The cashier asked for less than what she had said and I paid him. When I got back to our table my daughter laughed and pointed to the receipt. I had gotten a “senior discount.”

Now I don’t mind getting a senior discount but I never ask for one. What got me was the 20 year old cashier had taken one look at me and decided I certainly looked senior enough to get it. This morning I looked in the mirror and sadly had to agree with him. My face and balding head were covered in age spots. What hair I did have was thin and 95% silver. The wrinkles in my forehead and around my eyes were DEEP. I certainly looked like I was 58 years old. In fact, I probably looked a lot older than that. What got me, though, was on the inside there still was this really young guy wondering what the heck happened.

In truth, all of us tend to feel this way at times. It is the paradox of aging. On the inside we are a soul that is both ageless and eternal. We are a spirit that is forever young. On the outside, however, we are a body that keeps aging and wearing down with each extra year we spend on this world. It can be endlessly confusing and sometimes irritating too.

I decided then not to pay too much attention to that face in the mirror. I will do my best to keep my aging body healthy but I will also always try to live from that young, loving, joyful spirit within. That is who I truly am. That is who we all truly are. Whether you are 7 or 70 then always remember that you are an eternally young Child of God. You are Loved. You are meant to Love. And the more Love you share, the younger you will feel.