Andrew Kay: It’s an age thing
With only a few weeks to go now before my 58th birthday I can’t help pondering how I managed to get to be so old.
I mean all the signs are there, the white hair and ever increasing lack of said white hair; the aching bones and irritating gout; the spreading waist then panic induced shrinking waist… yes, I should have seen it coming, really I should.
I’ve often said that Brighton is the city that dismissed the notion of middle age. It seemed like a romantic ideal at first but the reality is this, skip middle age and there’s no denying when old age hits you full in the face like a runaway train.
Okay, so I’ve not reached old age quite yet, but when you see the impact of what age can do to a body, mind and, dare I suggest it, soul – well it makes you start thinking that middle age might not be such a bad thing.
Perhaps we should start to reinvent middle age, repackage it in a more attractive format, one that doesn’t stink of suede fronted cardigans, corduroy jackets with leather elbow patches and comfortable shoes – but where do you start?
When I was a very young art foundation student my life drawing tutor Patrick always said that when he was drawing women he always teed off with a nipple, and with men he kicked off with a ball. How I loved Patrick’s words of wisdom. Now when I begin work on a project I usually start with the name. Once I’ve come up with the name things usually start to fall into place, I find it clarifies my thoughts having a name at the start, even if I later change it.
So let’s re-name middle age. How about the age of achievement?
The age of refinement? The age of comfort, oh no, we’re back to slip on shoes there. The age of happiness? I’m not sure we all got to that one. How about the age of diminishing facility? Oh no, that’s far too bleak.
The age of diminished responsibility? More accurate maybe but not very attractive.
No, none of them will do at all. And in saying that maybe I have stumbled on the truth, this is the age of denial.
I am in denial about so many things that it has to be right. I’m in denial about how I look, how I feel, what I can afford, what I should be able to afford, what I can achieve, how late I can stay up, how early I can get back up, how much I can eat and how much I can drink and how quickly I can recover from both of the last two.
The one thing that I am not in denial about is what I have to give. Okay, I may be getting a bit cocky, but when it comes to the things in life that I love I can still deliver. I love my family and my friends and I can still go on doing that unimpaired by ageing. I love my work and, let’s face it, working with people in the food industry and the theatre world is more often than not a delight. I love working for Latest Media and in particular for Latest TV which is stretching my creativity in new and very exciting ways daily.
In fact, when I look at all this I feel like I have been given a new lease of life, I am rejuvenated by the challenge of all that is put before me. So maybe that is it, you turn a point in your life and everything after that is the age of challenge. The challenge of new demands spurring me on to stay young, if only in heart.
“Fairy tales, can come true, it can happen to you – if you’re young at heart” sang Frank Sinatra – “For it’s hard, you will find, to be narrow of mind – If you’re young at heart”.
How I love a good lyric!
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