Degenerative

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm dying. I know that this news may come as a shock to many of you. It's really sad. I may have as few as 50 or 60 years left.

The truth is, I suffer from a degenerative condition that so many people deal with every day. It's called aging. It's a condition that we contract at conception. In the beginning, it seems like a really great thing. Aging causes us to grow and develop and learn. But aging does not maintain this positive face forever.

Eventually, this condition begins to take its toll on our bodies. There comes a time when the symptoms of aging become more and more harmful

At first, those harmful symptoms appear innocuous and are seemingly only skin deep. Hair turns gray or begins to fall out. Lines appear on faces that were once smooth. Then the internal damages start. Joints don't work the way they used to and will sometimes pop or creak when in use. Our aging digestive system doesn't allow us to eat the same delicious foods that we enjoyed when we were younger. Neither does our metabolism for that matter. Vision gets blurry. Hearing becomes difficult.

Worst of all, in my opinion, we forget things. You may find yourself driving around singing a song on the radio. It's a song you've heard and sung a hundred times over the years. Suddenly, the lyrics you know backward and forward are gone, as if someone popped open your skull and scooped those words out of your brain. If you've experienced this, you know how unsettling it can feel.

Aging can also open the door for other miserable conditions. As years pass, odds of getting cancer or dealing with heart disease or dementia increase.

I try not to think of the effects of aging. In time, I may forget about them anyway. Maybe I'll finally realize that ignorance is bliss.

So if you or someone you love suffers from aging, just know you're not alone. More people than you know are suffering silently. Recognize the signs. Remember that knowledge is power.