I just had a birthday and am now 49. Aging was never much on my mind until after I hit 40 and my eyesight seriously began to be an issue. I've always worn glasses, but I hit 40 and suddenly I needed glasses for reading and the eventual bifocals. For some reason that hit me as the first physiological symptom of my own aging. My children are growing up and growing away. I'm glad for that, but again, it is a real shift in my life that I am adjusting to. My parents are around 80 now and I realize my time with them is seriously limited now, and the prospect of dealing with aging parents is daunting. My own retirement is something I can't ignore anymore. Will we be ready for that?

Aging brings many serious life changes with it. They aren't necessarily negative, but they are changes nonetheless. I wouldn't go back to my younger years if you paid me, but each stage of life has its challenges as well as rewards. Aging is a shared experience. We all do it. I think the pregnancy story comparison is a great analogy of people just finding a place of commonality with each other.