Age equals the number of years between you and your birth. It equals the experience you have gained from growing. Age sometimes even means you have earned certain benefits under the law.
But what form does Age take when it ceases to have meaning?
My great grandmother was a pretty lady. She was old-fashioned and charming, and I loved her dearly. I was always telling her “You will live to be one thousand years old.” But lines enriched her face all too quickly, and great grandma left us when she was 92.
My grandmother was an absolutely beautiful person. We were both extremely fond of one another. The softness of her elegant dresses and intoxicating draw of French perfume is still fresh in my mind. To her, I would constantly say: “Grandma, I hope you will stay beautiful for one million years.”
“Silly goose,” she would smile, “I don’t want to be around to go deaf and blind!” Sadly, grandma’s words foreshadowed her future. I was devastated when she died.
Bernadette Liang, my mother, captivated her way into celebrity status of old-Shanghai. All my school mates gossiped non-stop about how special she was. My father quickly became jealous anytime one of mom’s old boyfriends came into conversation. But in the past few years, during our long talks over the phone, Dad would tell me that mom was aging. Each time, I would get upset. “Don’t say that!” Each time, mom would interrupt “Your dad is telling the truth, honey. Time has shown itself; I can feel it in my bones.” I know one day I will have to face this truth, but the child inside me still wishes my mother would live a billion years.
Through three generations, life has proven the existence of age. And yet, I am still strongly affected by these women every day; their lives and love have made an infinite impression. We stay young because our hearts choose to. We become eternal when we pass that message on. Our spirit is the one thing Age cannot defeat. As long as we take care to remember this, there is nothing to fear, only life to live.
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