If you have Email and other social media accounts you get lots of STUFF from friends and family….me too. The other day I received one entitled, “How Old Are You?” The following link, http://www.korn19.ch/coding/days.php, was in the message so I followed it and found a form where you can type in your birth date and it will tell you the details about that particular day and ‘how many days old’ you are. Being 69 and a third years old my day-age turned out to be 25,334 days. Wow…that makes me sound really old! I’m not sure what their purpose is in computing how many days folks have been alive but it did get my attention. I think I can use the information to remind me to put things into perspective.

For instance; the natural follow-on question is…how many days do I have left? Also, have I used my previous days wisely? What will I do with the days I have left? What will I do differently with those days than I did with the first 25,334? One thing is pretty certain; I have fewer days left than I have already used…so do you. I have noticed, for most of the people around me, that as those days ‘tick away,’ people’s attitudes and perspectives tend to change… about almost everything. I remember a few years ago when my first grand son was five years old. When we met them at a restaurant for dinner he immediately announced that he had learned to count and then he began demonstrating. I stopped him when he got to 50 or so and I asked him what he thought was the biggest number in the world. Without hesitation he said it was 321, because he had never counted higher than that. We all laughed. Later, during a restroom break for him he said to his Dad…”Grandma and Grandpa are really old aren’t they?” And then he said, “I think Grandma and Grandpa are at the end of the counting.” We all had a great laugh and I told my son that while I didn’t feel 321, I may sometimes look 321, especially first thing in the morning! My grandson helped us get some fresh perspective on this ‘aging thing.’

The Old Testament book of Psalms, Chapter 90, records one on the Prophet Moses’ prayers to God. In verse 12 he says, “So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Do you remember the old saying: “With age comes wisdom?” Well, the truth is, sometimes age comes alone. The Max Holt translation of Psalm 90:12 is, “Remind us that time is short and we had better make wise informed choices about how to live out our remaining days with excellence, in every area of our lives.”

So, as you near the “end of the counting” I pray that your choices will be so excellent that your descendants will be talking about them for years. Blessings to you as you number your days.

Max Holt, Class 02-67, Association Chaplain