The Fountain of Youth

Author's Note

 Everyone wants to be young except for the young.

There's this bullshit saying: "Youth is wasted on the young." I call it bullshit because I hate it, but it's actually really accurate. You really don't know what you have until you lose it. Six year-olds don't expect to have arthritis in the future, or other weird aging things like bunions and wrinkles and dark eyebags. How could they? They haven't experienced anything like that, so it's nearly impossible for them to imagine. All they want to do is to grow up so they can do something. Whenever they play pretend, they always choose to pretend to be older than six.

And then when that six year-old ages into a fourteen year-old, they'll look at the past and laugh at how innocent and naive they were, but they'll also get nostalgic for the fun times with no worries. And when that fourteen year-old ages into a twenty year-old, they'll look at the past and laugh some more.

When that twenty year-old ages into a thirty year-old, they'll start to feel old. They'll look at the past and ask why didn't they exercise and play more often and enjoy that pain-free spine? Some things will get harder to do, like hangovers, and this thing called "second puberty" hits: wrinkles will occur, dark circles, cellulite, muffin tops that (though try as you might) inevitable appear. Maybe they'll have kids at this point, and they'll reflect on a time when peace and quiet was feasible.

When that thirty year-old ages into a forty-year old, they'll start getting their shit together. By now they might be married and they might have kids. Whatever their status, it's probably a lot more settled. They might start some new hobbies or travel to add interest to their lives.

Beyond that, it's hard to describe. A lot more aging, a lot more working, and then that golden age in the sixties when people retire. Also, having never experienced most of this myself, much of what I've just described can't be backed up with personal experiences. It also varies quite a bit from person to person.

From what I can say for sure, life isn't always easy, and getting caught up in your past is always a rollercoaster. At least, that's what it means for me. I'm only fourteen, and I'm already thinking about being seventy and retirement, so maybe I'm not the most qualified to talk about this. But, I have lived with young people and old people for all of my fourteen years, so maybe I can provide some insight to people who are still scared of growing old.