Aging Is Not All Bad
by Michael Donahoe
It is funny how things change as you age. So many things seem to come to a close, such as raising kids, working, dreams of what you want to accomplish while you are young and saving for retirement. Retirement hits you so fast sometimes, you wonder where the time has gone.
The good thing is there are so many other things you can do once you are older. Like not going to work, not saving for retirement, having your kids raised and watching them take care of their kids, and still having dreams of what you want to accomplish.
Another thing that is great in old age, or should I say more mature age, is seeing your grandkids grow up and meeting a new round of family, namely our great grandkids. My wife and I are blessed to have four great grandkids, the newest arriving on July 28, 2025.
Yes, we added a second great grandson to go along with our two great granddaughters. They are all special, but this last one had a little different way of being special. He had an issue with his heart, which fortunately, the doctors found before he was born. He had aortic stenosis and a hole in his heart.
We were so blessed to have the doctors know about this in advance and have a team and a plan all ready to go. Now, I cannot say we were all calm and relaxed over this situation, actually we were all scared and worried. Yet, there was so much prayer over this new great grandchild from many people, and we all looked forward to everything working out well.
Our new great grandson was born on Monday the 28th and on Friday, he had bypass surgery to repair the aorta and the hole. The surgery went great and he went through the surgery in good shape. What a relief we all felt once the operation was over and the surgeon said things went good and the patient did great.
I know our granddaughter and her husband have had a rough time during this ordeal, and they are still staying at the hospital while recovery completes. Yet, they are together with their new son, they have a great staff of doctors and nurses and we are all happy the surgery is over. We are also happy to hear that they will all be going home where they belong very soon.
UPDATE 8-13-25: Our new great grandson and parents are now home!
So glad to hear the good news about your newest grandchild. Aging is inescapable, but how we deal with is up to us. I think about it quite a bit since Patty and I are the only ones left in our family of origin. It is great to age with grace and to be at peace, yet to kick butt and surprise people every now and then. You said it well!