Every age you’ve ever been

“The great thing about getting older is that you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been….Because I was once a child, I am always a child. Because I was once a searching adolescent, given to moods and ecstasies, these are still part of me, and always will be.” ~Madeleine L’Engle

There are days when I find it hard to believe that I’m as old as I am now. While my reflection in the mirror reveals the truth in lines and wrinkles, sometimes I feel like the carefree kid I was in high school and college. Sometimes I feel as vulnerable as I did when I was a small child.

As today’s quote reminds us, we are all of the ages we’ve ever been. Our dreams and goals may have changed along the way, but everything we’ve experienced, at every stage in life, has made us who we are today. Imagine what you’d say if you had an opportunity to gather at a table, face to face, with the various “selves” you’ve been at different ages. What would you tell them? What words of advice, warning, praise, validation, or comfort would you give your younger selves? ~CL