Grace Notes: Aging can't tarnish the soul
I looked at the baby and cringed. His ears stood out like flags and his nose was lumpy. As his mom gazed expectantly at me, I fretted over what to say. I dared not hurt her feelings with the truth.
“What a beautiful child!” I said, crossing my fingers behind my back.
“I know,” the mom replied as a look of intense love crossed her face.
In that moment I suddenly understood the old saying about having a face “only a mother could love.” And I would amend that to include fathers as well.
The saying reminds me of the psalmist who assures us that in our heavenly father’s eyes, we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” Still, it is a huge challenge to think of ourselves as wonderful as we grow older. If you browse fashion magazines, you’ll rarely find models who are over 21. So many articles dole out advice on staving off aging with cosmetics and plastic surgery.
When we are young, we think we will always spring from bed each morning feeling chipper and cheery. Then comes middle age, when we see the first unmistakable sign of decline staring back at us from the looking glass. It can’t be, but it is – gasp— a wrinkle! The truth is this: whether we are male or female, rich or poor, there comes a day when we realize that our body doesn’t hold up to the promise of youth. To put it succinctly, some things sag and others bag.
Still, despite its many annoyances, aging can be a great teacher.
My Aunt Madeline had to wear a hearing aid and use a cane when she hit 85. However, her soul -- that marvelous spark that illuminates even the most decrepit body -- was thriving. Despite the trials of aging, she enjoyed caring for her prized orchids, and would take special ones to church to place upon the altar.
From my aunt’s example, I learned that time may wear down the body, but it needn’t tarnish the spirit. Only a few weeks before she died, she expressed joyful gratitude for the kind folks who cared for her in the assisted-living facility where she then lived. She was a woman of great faith who believed she would one day meet God in heaven. Her faith assured her that canes, wrinkles and all the creaks and snags of old age were just temporary.
Faith tells us that someday our earthly journey will end, and we will head to the Great Beyond. If we are fortunate, we will behold our beloved heavenly father face to face. And I can imagine him greeting us with the words we’ve been longing to hear: “What a beautiful child!”
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Lorraine’s latest book is “Death of a Liturgist,” a wild romp through a fictional church in Decatur. She also is the author of “The Abbess of Andalusia,” a book about Flannery O’Connor. Her e-mail address is lorrainevmurray@yahoo.com
