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Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age

“The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.” (Frank Lloyd Wright) Non-fiction pieces, personal essays and occasional poems that explore how we feel about how we age and offer tips for getting the most out of life.

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A Spa Day of Decadence

3 min readApr 8, 2026

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Photo by CRYSTALWEED cannabis on Unsplash

As I age, I am in a quandary about how or if to celebrate my birthday. The answer varies for each individual, and depending on one’s mood, the answer may change from one year to the next until, by the time a person reaches triple digits, celebrating in some way is mandatory!

A sudden realization, as we reach a certain age, jolts us into reality, as we recognize that we are suddenly getting old. Not yet — but soon. Maybe very soon. That unfamiliar, undiscovered, murky period of life quickly approaches, much faster than we would like.

So it begs the question — to celebrate or not to celebrate. We are encouraged to celebrate the fact that we are still around and hopefully enjoying life. Landmark birthdays are an excuse for special occasions and extravagant expenses. This year did not mark a special numbered day for me. It was simply another day denoting a higher age.

It is an omen of things to come — more wrinkles, weaker eyesight and hearing, more AARP mail and fewer fliers from fitness clubs, more pills and doctor visits, and less spicy foods. Offers of seats on buses unexpectedly materialize, and it gets a bit harder to keep up with the grandkids. The extra pounds refuse to leave and eventually we sigh in…

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Meryl Baer
Meryl Baer

Written by Meryl Baer

The shore is home. Folks visit in summer, but no one stops by in winter, so I write.

Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age
Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age

Published in Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age

“The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.” (Frank Lloyd Wright) Non-fiction pieces, personal essays and occasional poems that explore how we feel about how we age and offer tips for getting the most out of life.