My 30-ish doctor was explaining an ailment to me a year or so ago, and he started out by saying, "As we age...." Now, it did not make me angry, but it did make me laugh. I had to explain to him that he might understand the medical side of aging, but he does not understand the reality of aging.

        Steve and Paula are lovely Christian people. Married now for 52 years. They love each other, but Steve kind of took her for granted. Then, about fifteen years ago, Paula had a heart attack. Marsha and I sat with Steve in the middle of the night at a hospital while she underwent emergency surgery. It all went well, but then about five years ago, Paula got cancer. Aggressive surgery and aggressive treatment and now Paula is cancer free. Steve realizes now just how close he has come to losing this gem of a lady and she is his focus.

        However, there are limits. Both were quite active before all this started. However, Paula is now limited somewhat. By late afternoon, she is beat. Steve, on the other hand, has as much energy as ever. By late afternoon he wants to be puttering with his boat or working in the garden or trimming the shrubs. He does not want to sit and watch TV before dinner. Paula, on the other hand, needs to stop and sit and, since she is sitting in front of the TV, she watches it.

        Steve will come in occasionally and watch at least a part of what she is watching, just to be with her. And this is where I was brought into the story.

        It seems Paula enjoys watching reruns of something called My Strange Addiction. Marsha and I had watched part of an episode back when I was at the funeral home. In a seven day period we had five people die in our community from overdoses or other addiction related issues. I tuned into this show to get a better understanding of addiction so I could better serve the families. Turned out, it had nothing to do with that kind of addiction. In the episode we partially watched, it featured a man who was romantically involved with his Volkswagen Beetle. I don't think I have ever seen anything so stupid. It had to be staged. Just silly. But Paula enjoyed it and she was watching the program when Steve walked in and sat down.

        The episode that day was about a woman who drank gasoline. She apparently couldn't help herself. Steve started to say something about the absurdity of the show, but Paula shushed him. She was really into the program and was showing concern for this woman, so Steve shushed. She poured herself a glass of gas and started drinking it when the program broke for commercial. 

        "Pastor, I'm telling you, it was stupid. But Paula was on the edge of her seat. I mean, she had tears in her eyes! When it came back on, the woman was lying on the kitchen floor. Paula kind of wailed and said, 'Oh, she's dead!' And Pastor, I don't know what came over me, but before I could stop myself, I said, 'No honey, she just ran out of gas!'"

        OK, OK. Steve and Paula are real, as are her ailments and that particular television series. But the rest of it is a joke. The point here is that there is humor to be found in almost any situation. And, 'as we age,' we need to find the humor in life. Our time here is way too short to grump around filled with worry or fear or concern. We are human and we naturally have worries and fears and concerns, but there are things that make us smile, too. Search them out.

        Blessings.